By Ashley Fultz
Students from the Speed School of Engineering at the University of Louisville are teaming up with Kentucky Satellite Enterprise to help launch several satellites within the next 10 years. The project hopes to launch Kentucky’s first satellite, KySat1, in late 2007 or early 2008, and its second, KySat2, by 2009.
Graduate and undergraduate students from colleges and universities all over Kentucky are collaborating to help design and build these satellites. Together, the U of L, University of Kentucky, Moorehead State University, Western Kentucky University and other colleges make up the Kentucky Satellite Ownership Group.
Seven speed school students at U of L have had the opportunity to participate in the designing of KySat1. Alaa Aly, an electrical and computer engineering Ph.D. student, was key in designing the software which is responsible for receiving data transmitted from the satellite back to earth.
“This experience adds to the university’s expertise and may help the university in the future to lead other state joint projects,” said Aly.
The main goal of the satellite projects is education. The information collected by the satellites will be shared with students, teachers and family members free of charge all over Kentucky.
KySat1 will have an on-board camera and will relay telemetry information back to earth for anyone around the world.
Senior marketing major Catherine Wright said she thought the project would be a unique endeavor for the university.
President of Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation Kris Kimel said that the project is expected to bring attention to the state and its affiliated universities. But the project is very focused on encouraging students of all ages in the state to get involved in science and engineering.
“In the beginning of 2007, we are actually going to involve some high school students in some of the direct mission support activities for the satellite,” Kimel said. “But in addition to that, once the satellite is in orbit, students across the state will basically be able to access information off the satellite,” he added.
“This project seems like it will really help Speed School students get hands-on learning experience as well as being a learning tool for kids across the state,” said sophomore Blair Fultz, a Spanish major.
If the project is completed, Kentucky will be the first state in the United States to launch and own satellites.
