41st Cycle Research Projects
Abiti Alberto - Orbital debris management for a sustainable space environment
Email: alberto.abiti@phd.unipd.it
External links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alberto-abiti-717975268?/
Candiani Marco - Advanced techniques for planetary exploration payloads development
Office collocation: geotec 00140 04 010 in Via Venezia, 1
External links: LinkedIn ps://www.linkedin.com/in/marco-candiani-7bb6a539a?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=android_app
Background: I acquired a bachelor and master’s degree in Aerospace engineering at the University of Padua. My master’s thesis focused on the preliminary evaluation of a swarm of resource-constrained monoclar rovers aimed at mapping the lunar environment. The thesis was conducted exploiting synthetic data generated using a ROS2 compatible simulator and conducting IMU and vision sensor-fusion using factor-graph optimization, allowing me to gain an initial understanding of rover control techniques and on the complex mathematics of sensor-fusion. During my master’s I also took part in the Quarto di Litro student project, during which I worked as an aerodynamics engineer, conducting studies concerning passive and active aerodynamic appendages for the motorcycle and their effect on vehicle dynamics, taking part in their production and being responsible for holding contacts with some of our sponsors in the composites field. This experience taught me the fundamentals of CFD analyses, the design and production process of one-off prototypes and how to work as part of a team.
Research project summary: The primary focus of my PhD research is the thermo-mechanical design of the optical bench and of the thermal control subsystem for the MINISPEC (Moon IN-situ Imaging SPECtrometer) instrument, up to a TRL3. MINISPEC will be an imaging spectrometer designed for operations on the lunar surface for the purposes of detecting hydrated and hydroxylated minerals, water volatiles and REE (Rare Earth Elements), resources which will be fundamental for the purposes of ISRU (In Situ Resource Utilization), in turn aiding future sustained human habitation of the Moon. The implementation of rover-borne hyperspectral sensors is of crucial importance as it allows for a centimetre-level resolution, allowing for the accurate localization of the materials and also for a mineralogical study of features of interest within the lunar environment. Because of the scientific requirements stated above, the instrument’s spectral range will be of [0.4, 4] μm, posing stringent thermal control requirements. Another thermo-mechanical challenge arises from the large temperature fluctuations typical of the lunar day-night cycle (from 100 K to 400K, depending on local time, latitude and shading conditions), which are due to the insulant characteristics of lunar regolith.
Ghedin Marco - Development of Innovative Technologies for Miniaturized and Sustainable Propulsion Devices based on Electrodynamic Tether
Email: marco.ghedin@phd.unipd.it
Office phone number: 6879
Office collocation: Ex Ing. Meccanica, via Venezia, 1, Padova (V/00140 02 074)
External links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ghd182/ https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5yqsQaYAAAAJ
Background: proximity operations and docking mechanisms for In-Orbit Servicing and In-Orbit Assembly applications, development of propulsion systems based on electrodynamic tethers
Research project summary: experimental development and validation of a compact electrodynamic tether deployment and retrieval mechanism, with the goal of enabling new operational capabilities and applications for spacecraft mobility and sustainable deorbiting
Gilioli Diego - Advanced control systems for adaptive optics for laser communications
Email: diego.gilioli@phd.unipd.it
Office collocation: Dynamic Optics, via Giovanni Savelli, 72, 35129 Padova PD
External links: Personal Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diego-gilioli-36a883a9/ Dynamic Optics web page: https://www.dynamic-optics.it/
Background: I completed a Bachelor's degree in Physics and a Master's degree in Astrophysics and Cosmology, both at the University of Bologna. During the internship in preparation for the master thesis, I worked in the INAF-OAS facility on an innovative alignment technique based on the ghost reflections of the lenses observed using the Micro Alignment Telescope. The case of study was the Laser Guide Star Objective (LGSO) alignment to the Multiconjugate adaptive Optics Relay For ELT Observations (MORFEO). My role was to design and build a prototype optical system to validate the method, perform the alignment of the components, analyse the achieved results and apply them to a simulated ray-tracing environment of the LGSO.
