Isr 5 Featured Body 960x500
R&D Engineer sees his reflection as he works on the Cibola satellite, which was designed to prove that off-the-shelf computer processors called field-programmable gate arrays can be used for supercomputing in space. The processors can be reconfigured while the satellite is in orbit, enabling researchers to modify them for different tasks, such as studying lightning, disturbances in the ionosphere, and radio-frequency sources.

ISR-5 is composed of electrical and mechanical technicians, technologists, and engineers, systems engineers, project control specialists and other specialists all of whom contribute to the efforts of producing high-quality space-based instrumentation.

Focus Areas

Mechanical engineering—specialized equipment design

  • Mechanical design and advanced electronics packaging, assembly, design, and fabrication support to all aspects of mechanical and electronic assemblies
  • Mechanical analysis with a focus on space environment—radiation, thermal, vibration analysis, and test development
  • Environmental testing (vibration, shock, vacuum, thermal, de-pressurization)
  • Design and fabrication of special tooling, fixtures, and handling equipment as required for assembly and testing of hardware
  • Interface between mechanical design, fabrication, and parts suppliers

Fabrication and assembly

  • Electronic board support
  • Electronic design automation layout
  • Electronics troubleshooting and fabrication (NASA-certified) assembly
  • Parts inventory database based on "pc/MRP" software package
  • Quality Assurance

System test and integration

  • Space systems engineering support
  • Radio-frequency and analog electronic development, design, and testing for flight-based systems

Systems, production, and project controls

  • Hands-on fabrication and manufacturing experience, scheduling, and coordinating activities to complete projects, and systems engineering
  • Systems engineering and product lifecycle analysis for all project phases