Sun Devil Satellite Laboratory (SDSL)

About

The Sun Devil Satellite Laboratory is a student organization dedicated to the design, test, and manufacture of spacecraft and spacecraft technologies. It’s project-based, enabling many students to be exposed to a variety of engineering problems.

SDSL participates in the annual AAS CanSat competition. This competition allows students to get hands-on experience with the engineering design process and the opportunity to apply classroom theory to a hands-on project. The teams have placed high for several years in a row. It also supports the Pulsed Plasma Thruster project. The solid-state thruster system under development vaporizes Teflon with an electric arc. Students learn about electrical components, design, and vacuum equipment.

The organization wants to get students closer to making space hardware. Currently, the org is starting up the Hyperspectral CubeSat team (HCT), which will use hyperspectral imaging for scientific purposes. Finally, SDSL led the NASA funded Phoenix Mission. The mission consists of a 3U CubeSat equipped with a thermal imaging camera that will measure and quantify the heat island effect on the City of Phoenix and other cities around the world. You’ll find an exposé about it below!

SDSL has collaborated with industry, including Orbital ATK and Lockheed Martin, and actively participates in outreach activities at ASU.