Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] E100 Suitability for Space Applications

[Matt Ettus]

On 01/19/2011 07:56 AM, Ed Criscuolo wrote:
> Matt,
>
> I'm considering the E100 for use with GnuRadio/UHD
> aboard a small spacecraft, and I have a few of questions:

We definitely did not design with space applications in mind.


> 1. What's the power drain? Watt-hours are always at a
> premium aboard a small spacecraft.

The E100 itself draws about 6-9 Watts.  The daughterboard will also draw 
power, up to as much as an additional 6 or 7 watts depending on the board.

> 2. Are there any vacuum-sensitive components? For example,
> electrolytic capacitors are no good (they dry out or rupture)
> but tantalum's are ok.

No electrolytics on there.  There are 4 crystal oscillators which may or 
may not have vacuum issues.


> 3. Is cooling an issue? Air-cooled heatsinks don't work in
> vacuum, and have to be replaced with conduction cooling.

We have done no testing of cooling in a vacuum, so you are really on 
your own here.

> 4. Any Lithium batteries? They are considered hazardous for
> space and require special provisions or removal.

There is a coin cell battery backup for the real time clock, but that 
can be removed.

> 5. Without writing any FPGA or DSP code, what's the ballpark
> sample rate that the ARM can keep up with?

It largely depends on what you want to do with those samples, but you 
should figure on 4-5 MS/s.

Matt