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arXiv · 1609.00184

Pointing System for the Balloon-Borne Astronomical Payloads

K. Nirmal·A. G. Sreejith·Joice Mathew·Mayuresh Sarpotdar·Ambily Suresh·Ajin Prakash·Margarita Safonova·Jayant Murthy
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Abstract

We describe the development and implementation of a light-weight, fully autonomous 2-axis pointing and stabilization system designed for balloon-borne astronomical payloads. The system is developed using off-the-shelf components such as Arduino Uno controller, HMC 5883L magnetometer, MPU-9150 Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and iWave GPS receiver unit. It is a compact and rugged system which can also be used to take images/video in a moving vehicle, or in areal photography. The system performance is evaluated from the ground, as well as in conditions simulated to imitate the actual flight by using a tethered launch.

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K. Nirmal, A. G. Sreejith, Joice Mathew, Mayuresh Sarpotdar, Ambily Suresh, Ajin Prakash, Margarita Safonova, Jayant Murthy. 2016-09-01. Pointing System for the Balloon-Borne Astronomical Payloads. https://doi.org/10.1117/1.jatis.2.4.047001

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