From mission analysis to systems engineering of the OUFTI-Next nanosatellite

OUFTI-Next is the new CubeSat project of the University of Liège. This mission
was imagined after the success of OUFTI-1. The goal of this nanosatellite is to detect
hydric stress of agricultural fields around the world. It is equipped with a Mid-Wavelength
InfraRed (MWIR) detector. It will be a world premiere with such a small satellite (3U
or 30 cm × 10 cm × 10 cm). From the data, the temperature of the crop will be extracted
and the irrigation status assessed.
This satellite is a technology demonstrator for an ambitious project. The final goal
is indeed to create a smart irrigation program with a daily revisit over a location. It
will provide tools for farmers to improve the irrigation, increase the yield of their fields
and spare less drinkable water. With only one satellite, it is unfortunately impossible.
OUFTI-Next’s mission is no less important because it will demonstrate that the integration
of a MWIR detector is feasible.
This master thesis is the continuity of a feasibility study done last year (2016-2017).
From the requirements, primordial aspects of the satellite are developed. Orbits, communication,
power budget, attitude strategy, ... are typical topics introduced in this work. It
offers an overview of the satellite and a link between different subjects addressed in other
master theses (the detector’s cooling system, the optical design and the thermal aspect).
At the end, some configurations, thought as simple as possible, are introduced and
discussed. All subsystems are reviewed with the will to find an optimal configuration. Of
course, concessions are done and assumptions made. At this stage of the development, it
is natural that some information is missing.