High-Level Project Summary
We have designed a rover which can survive Venus for 60 days,while capturing photos and bringing data back to Earth. This rover will be using two sources of energy: solar & wind.In addition to this, our energy will then be stored in a lithium sulfur battery which we have decided to use due to its high energy density, safety due to higher ionization energy, high temperature stability,and its low self discharge rate(around 8.4% for 60 days). This rover will be isolated with Molybdenum(used in high temperatures, 4639C),and save its properties up to 1260C. We have also integrated pistols in the solar panels, and in case of high speed wind they will turn into a compacted form to prevent breaking.
Link to Final Project
Link to Project "Demo"
Detailed Project Description
The onyx rover is projected to last 60 days in the Venus environment. According to the statistics, the temperature on Venus varies from 460 C to 800 C and the winds are up to 360 Km per hour, so we have decided to use these properties to our advantage. The primary source of our energy will come from the solar panels integrated into the upper part of the rover's body which will obtain energy from the sun and the Lithium Sulfur(Highly resistible to high temperatures) battery will use the energy to power up the systems in the rover. What happens if the winds are too strong and the solar panels seem to be in danger? Then the pistons under the panels will lower the panels in the rover's body and the strong winds which were a problem to us will then be used as an advantage. The wind will go inside the body of the rover through the vents which are built with the required aerodynamics to send only a portion of the wind to the carbon fiber turbines which will then power up the battery. But what happens in the case of a malfunction, well the battery will go into power saving mode which will automatically part the driving system of the rover from the battery, and only use the power to power up the comms system. The driving system then will work by the turbines in the wheels, which will be directed by the wind and not the power until the rover has enough power to get back on track. The rover's power system will be isolated with Molybdenum a material that endures temperatures up to 4600 C and won't lose its properties up to 1260 C.
Space Agency Data
https://www.nasa.gov/exploring-hell-venus-rover-challenge/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/automaton-rover-for-extreme-environments-aree/https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/1519/venus-resources/?page=0&per_page=40&order=created_at+desc&search=&tags=Venus&category=324
We used the data to choose the right materials, the right type of battery and the right system to survive the extreme conditions that Venus has.
Hackathon Journey
For us this hackathon journey was very insightful. We learned a lot, but we also faced many challenges. Our inspiration came from seeing potential that this project is doable, besides it being a hard project to develop within two days. During this time, our group was mostly invested in researching and learning how we could develop such rover and would it be possible to work? We are firm believers, that with some help from experts we would be able to bring this project to life and bring new knowledge back to Earth from Venus!
References
https://techport.nasa.gov/view/92914
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/1519/venus-resources/?page=0&per_page=40&order=created_at+desc&search=&tags=Venus&category=324
https://2019.spaceappschallenge.org/challenges/planets-near-and-far/memory-maker/details
https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/pdf/10.2514/1.41886
https://ec.europa.eu/research-and-innovation/en/horizon-magazine/cheaper-lighter-and-more-energy-dense-promise-lithium-sulphur-batteries
Tags
#venus #onyxpg #letslandinV #knowledgetoEarth