Space exploration

Space exploration is the use of astronomy and space technology to explore outer space. While the exploration of space is carried out mainly by astronomers with telescopes, its physical exploration is conducted both by uncrewed robotic space probes and human spaceflight. Space exploration, like its classical form astronomy, is one of the main sources for space science. While the observation of objects in space, known as astronomy, predates reliable recorded history, it was the development of large and relatively efficient rockets during the mid-twentieth century that allowed physical space exploration to become a reality. The world's first large-scale experimental rocket program was Opel-RAK under the leadership of Fritz von Opel and Max Valier during the late 1920s leading to the first crewed rocket cars and rocket planes, which paved the way for the Nazi era V2 program and US and Soviet activities from 1950 onwards. The Opel-RAK program and the spectacular public demonstra

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Perma Ehôla - une architecture pour une école en nature, Réchy (VS)

Florence Revaz

Les écoles en nature sont apparues en réaction à un manque d’infrastructures scolaires ; ce fut le cas à la suite des bombardements de 1945, lorsque de nombreuses écoles allemandes étaient en ruine. Kindergarten est un terme hérité de cette période où les écoliers apprenaient dans les jardins. Aujourd’hui, l’on observe une demande grandissante de parents et d’enseignants pour ce type d’école. Les bienfaits de la nature sur la santé et l’apprentissage de l’enfant font partie de leurs motivations premières. Le projet Perma Ehôla inaugure une architecture adaptée à l’enseignement en nature sur l’entier du cursus primaire. L’espace arrondi de la classe coïncide avec l’enseignement circulaire. Les zones chauffées sont réduites, adaptées à l’âge des enfants et à leur fréquentation de la salle. Le fait d’intégrer le mobilier dans les murs permet de libérer le plan. Des parois coulissantes vitrées offrent une flexibilité et un lien privilégié avec la nature du site. L’architecture pavillonnaire procure une échelle familiale de faible densification. Les matériaux sont naturels et locaux. L’école s’implante à cheval entre zone agricole et urbaine, dans le village de Réchy. Lien territorial ancestral, le bord de la rivière attenante offre un chemin pédestre sûr et privilégié. En amont de la route cantonale, elle guide les écoliers vers des zones d’exploration en nature : forêt de plaine, berge du Rhône.

2020

Mechanical intelligence for learning embodied sensor-object relationships

Ahalya Prabhakar

Intelligence involves processing sensory experiences into representations useful for prediction. Understanding sensory experiences and building these contextual representations without prior knowledge of sensor models and environment is a challenging unsupervised learning problem. Current machine learning methods process new sensory data using prior knowledge defined by either domain knowledge or datasets. When datasets are not available, data acquisition is needed, though automating exploration in support of learning is still an unsolved problem. Here we develop a method that enables agents to efficiently collect data for learning a predictive sensor model-without requiring domain knowledge, human input, or previously existing data-using ergodicity to specify the data acquisition process. This approach is based entirely on data-driven sensor characteristics rather than predefined knowledge of the sensor model and its physical characteristics. We learn higher quality models with lower energy expenditure during exploration for data acquisition compared to competing approaches, including both random sampling and information maximization. In addition to applications in autonomy, our approach provides a potential model of how animals use their motor control to develop high quality models of their sensors (sight, sound, touch) before having knowledge of their sensor capabilities or their surrounding environment. Information-based search strategies are relevant for the learning of interacting agents dynamics and usually need predefined data. The authors propose a method to collect data for learning a predictive sensor model, without requiring domain knowledge, human input, or previously existing data.

NATURE PORTFOLIO2022

Preliminary Design of a Lunar Reconnaissance Drone

Thomas Pfeiffer, Erik Uythoven

In this report, a preliminary design study of a compact lunar reconnaissance drone module which will assist exploration rovers is presented. It is designed to assist future exploratory rover missions in difficult environments such as PSRs or extreme topographies. Although similar concepts have been validated on Mars by NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter, only few such ideas exist for lunar applications. The main challenges of this project lie in the propulsion system to be used, the thermal system of the drone (due to extreme temperatures) and the 3D mapping of the lunar surface using a flash lidar system. These aspects were studied in detail with promising results: For a drone with a weight of 20 kg, 1 kg of green monopropellant is sufficient to cover a distance of a least 1 km before it needs refuelling. In this report, it is assumed that the lightweight flash lidar technology should be developed enough to allow for 10 cm resolution at 50 m flight altitude. This feasibility and initial design study sets a foundation for lunar drones and exploration of the Moon using flying spacecrafts, although many open questions remain to be solved and detailed designs to be performed.

2022

EE-582: Lessons learned from the space exploration

The objective of the course is to present with different viewpoints, the lessons learned which lead to the decisions in the space exploration and their consequences today and for the decades to come. A semester continuous evaluation is done through a project (see below).

EE-585: Space mission design and operations

This course is a "concepts" course. It introduces a variety of concepts in use in the design of a space mission, manned or unmanned, and in space operations. it is at least partly based on the practical space experience of the lecturer.

EE-584: Spacecraft design and system engineering

The main objective of the course is to introduce the concept of space system design and engineering. The course will describe the various subsystems involved in the design of a satellite. It will also describe the techniques of systems engineering that are used to obtain a coherent satellite design.

Space Race

The Space Race was a 20th-century competition between two Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic mis

Spaceflight

Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly objects, usually spacecraft into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight is unc

Human spaceflight

Human spaceflight (also referred to as manned spaceflight or crewed spaceflight) is spaceflight with a crew or passengers aboard a spacecraft, often with the spacecraft being operated directly by the