Engineering a satellite
End-to-End Development of a Satellite to Demonstrate On-Orbit Visual Navigation
Argus is a technology demonstration mission for a low-cost and efficient vision-based Orbit Determination system, aimed at solving the lost-in-space problem for small satellites, with an anticipated launch in Fall 2025. The project is led by PI Prof. Zachary Manchester and Prof. Brandon Lucia at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).
The payload includes four cameras and an NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano 8Gb, where neural network-based region classifiers and landmark detectors identify salient locations from Earth images. These are then processed by optimization-based algorithms to determine the satellite’s orbit.
As engineering lead, I oversee the development and testing of hardware and software across all subsystems. I am a key contributor to ADCS, C&DH, Communications (software), and Payload, with several subsystems I personally fully own.
I also serve as a TA for the related class Spacecraft Design-Build-Fly, where students get to join the mission.