The Western Aerospace Launch Initiative is on the brink of exploring space with their latest project. Dr. Kristina Lemmer, one of the heads of the group and a professor of Mechanical and Aerospace engineering, is helping WALI achieve getting a satellite into space.

WALI is all about the people who make up the group. It is mostly made up of engineering students, but any student is welcome to join.

Satellite design takes all types, Lemmer said.

For this reason, a large combination of different engineering students are in this club. They are a group of highly skilled and motivated students who strive to gain skills that they can apply to their future. They also work with local schools and students to further their experience and learning.

Their biggest project right now is working with the Air Force to design a CubeSat to launch into space. A CubeSat is a very small, cubic satellite that is about 10 cm by 10 cm. Depending on the designer of the satellite, its mission can change, but its basic mission is to send data from space back to Earth.

There are two ways that a CubeSat can be launched, either directly off a launch vehicle or from the International Space Station. WALI is unsure which route they will take because they are still in the first phases of designing, developing, and putting the satellite out into space. The Air Force helps that process along.

The Air Force put out a call to universities to design a satellite to be launched into space. This started a year ago with eight other universities involved along with WMU. It is a program that has been around since 1999, and its goal is to train tomorrows space professionals.

It provides the students with experiences that they cant get anywhere else, Lemmer said.

The Air Force provides a team of dedicated professionals that always keep in check with the students and go over all the different aspects of the satellite project. The students have to document everything in their specific mission called the P-spec mission.

The P-spec mission goal is to analyze plasma produced by an electric propulsion device while in orbit. They will have a six unit satellite that separates into a four unit and a two unit. They have yet to determine exactly how to analyze electric propulsion thrusters while in orbit, so there is still a lot of work to do.

The soonest launch wouldnt be until January of 2020. The Air Force encourages the whole community to get behind the project. There are multiple phases that go into the making and launching of this satellite, but they are hoping to get it done well in the quickest time they can.

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WMU's aerospace initiative launches new project - Western Herald