Space information technology
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Frank Dannemann
Frank Dannemann is holding a diploma in Physics (University of Oldenburg) and has a doctoral degree in Computer Science (University of Würzburg). He joined the
German Aerospace Center (DLR) in 2002, where he currently works as head of the Avionics Systems Department at the Institute of Space Systems in Bremen. He is DLR’s representative in the advisory group of theSpace Avionics Open Interface Architecture (SAVOIR) initiative of theEuropean Space Agency (ESA). His research focus lies on model-based, scalable and autonomous avionics for future space systems.
Requirements on information technology (IT) in space has increased drastically over the last decade. Besides system-critical control tasks, cutting-edge space IT systems have to address the following societal challenges arising from current and future space missions:
The need for world-wide internet created the rapidly emerging NewSpace sector:
large satellite constellations demand – at the same time – performant, reliable and cheap technologies
in-orbit servicing demands highly agile, vision guided, autonomous rendezvous & docking maneuvers
high demand for autonomous operating scenarios
highly-autonomous on-board (pre-)processing of payload data
rapid space borne response to disasters
highly autonomous missions, working in
extremely resource constraint, mostly unknown & harsh environments
This special issue of it – Information Technology contains five articles which shed light on different aspects and challenges in Space IT. These contributions are grouped into two parts: the Regular Papers focusing on technologies and a Special Section containing a cross-domain contribution at the intersection of Computer Science and Psychology.
Regular papers
The first two articles in this section – “Towards Modular and Scalable On-Board Computer Architecture” and “Advanced Data Handling Architecture for EO Satellites” – concentrate on the “heart” of the spacecraft data handling system: the On-Board Computer (OBC). They shed light on the transition path from traditional federated embedded computing architectures to modular and centralized solutions based on commercial open standards, in order to address the demanding processing needs from e. g. EO missions.
As much as the embedded hardware changes within modern spacecraft, so does the embedded software. The article “spaceApps – A Modular Approach for On-Board Software” introduces a novel satellite software architecture based on a modular, App-like software concept as used on mobile phones in order to promote software modularity and partial qualification capabilities. The spaceApps concept was developed in the frame of the OPS-SAT mission, which provides an open experiment platform in space.
The section closes with a survey about the “Current State and Future Challenges in Deep Space Communication”. Here, not only an overview about the historical development in this field is given, but also the ongoing research as well as future challenges – arising from e. g. deep space mission or large satellite constellations – are described.
Special section
The Qualitative Study of Machine Learning Practices and Engineering Challenges in Earth Observation brings together the currently driving forces in the space sector: the research area Machine Learning (ML) and the application area EO. Within an empirical exploratory study using semi-structured interviews, the current practices and engineering-related challenges of applying ML to the enormous EO data sets are investigated from the perspective of EO domain experts.
I would like to thank the authors of the articles, who prepared and revised their contributions to this special issue, and the various reviewers for their helpful and constructive comments. I also would like to thank Stefan Conrad and the Host Editor of this issue, Görschwin Fey, for their support.
About the author
Frank Dannemann is holding a diploma in Physics (University of Oldenburg) and has a doctoral degree in Computer Science (University of Würzburg). He joined the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in 2002, where he currently works as head of the Avionics Systems Department at the Institute of Space Systems in Bremen. He is DLR’s representative in the advisory group of the Space Avionics Open Interface Architecture (SAVOIR) initiative of the European Space Agency (ESA). His research focus lies on model-based, scalable and autonomous avionics for future space systems.
© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Space information technology
- Regular Papers
- Towards modular and scalable on-board computer architecture
- Advanced data handling architecture for earth observation satellites
- spaceAPPS – A modular approach for on-board software
- Current state and future challenges in deep space communication: A survey
- A qualitative study of Machine Learning practices and engineering challenges in Earth Observation
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Editorial
- Space information technology
- Regular Papers
- Towards modular and scalable on-board computer architecture
- Advanced data handling architecture for earth observation satellites
- spaceAPPS – A modular approach for on-board software
- Current state and future challenges in deep space communication: A survey
- A qualitative study of Machine Learning practices and engineering challenges in Earth Observation
