REXUS and BEXUS – a Swedish–German co-operation for University Student Experiments on Rockets and Balloons
- Paper number
IAC-08.E1.1.4
- Author
Mr. Ola Widell, Swedish Space Corporation, Sweden
- Coauthor
Dr. Olle Norberg, Swedish Space Corporation, Sweden
- Coauthor
Mr. Stig Kemi, Swedish Space Corporation, Sweden
- Coauthor
Mr. Lennart Poromaa, Swedish Space Corporation, Sweden
- Coauthor
Mr. Olle Persson, Sweden
- Coauthor
Mr. Andreas Stamminger, DLR German Aerospace Center, Germany
- Coauthor
Mr. Peter Turner, DLR GSOC, Germany
- Year
2008
- Abstract
In June 2007 the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Swedish National Space Board signed an agreement to jointly provide flight opportunities for university students to fly experiments on suborbital rockets and stratospheric balloons during a five year period. The implementation of this unique student programme is handled by EuroLaunch, which is a co-operation between the Mobile Rocket Base (MORABA) of DLR and the Swedish Space Corporation. Students from all ESA member states are eligible to apply to this programme, named REXUS (rockets) and BEXUS (balloons). The student programme involves two suborbital rocket missions and two stratospheric balloon flights per year. All flights are performed from the Esrange Space Center in Sweden. The REXUS is an unguided, spin-stabilised, solid propellant, single stage rocket. The vehicle has a length of 5.6 m and a diameter of 356 mm capable of carrying 30 kg of student experiments up to an altitude of 90-100 km. The BEXUS balloon has a volume of 12,000 m3 and a diameter of 25 m at floating altitude. The total mass available for experiments is between 40 and 100 kg. The maximum altitude is 35 km and the flight duration is 3-5 hours. The programme builds on experience of previous student missions where the best practices for how to carry out this kind of programme has been learnt. It involves students in all phases of a real space programme, from proposal through selection, design, reviews, construction, testing, flight campaign, and ending with data analysis and presentation of results. The students participate in a one week long Student Training Week, during which they learn about the space environment, best practices for design and assembly, integration and testing of space equipment, interfacing to power and telemetry and command links, and lessons learned from earlier students. A historical resume of previous flight opportunities for university students at Esrange and the current guidelines and procedures for REXUS and BEXUS flight opportunities involving DLR as well as the ESA Education office will be presented. The REXUS/BEXUS programme gives students the opportunity to efficiently build on the experience of today’s professional space engineers, and to obtain a flying start on their career.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-08.E1.1.4.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
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