Biology Team Preliminary Design Review

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Biology Team Preliminary Design Review

• Katherine Cullis, Susanna Jacobs, Puja Kapoor,
• Kim Richard, Shellene Wright
• 11/05/2009

2
Mission

• Objective To discover which of the four
  experimental conditions will be the strongest
  mutagenic agents of this particular strain of E.
  coli.
• Hypothesis If mutations do occur, the
  expectation is that they will be observed in the
  heated, radiation-exposed compartment of the
  payload.
• Why In the current crisis of antibiotic
  resistance, learning when, why, and how quickly
  strains of bacteria mutate when exposed to
  adverse conditions is important in medical
  research.

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Benefits to Scientific Community

• -In the current crisis of antibiotic resistance,
  better understanding when, why, and how bacteria
  mutate better arms the scientific community to
  react to these mutations as they arise.
  Furthermore, as we send mankind into space, we
  continually send the normal flora of their bodies
  into space as well. It is important to
  understand the likely ramifications of space
  exploration on any organic life we may introduce
  into a different environment.

4
Flow Down

5
Design

• A rectangular box constructed from foam core.
• Its dimensions will be 8in x 8in x 6.5in. There
  will be an American Flag on one of the square
  sides.
• The inside of the box will be divided into four
  compartments. One half of the box will contain
  heaters and be insulated. The other half of the
  box will be exposed to the near-space
  temperatures. On both the hot side and the
  cold side of the box (the heated and unheated
  halves, respectively), one compartment will have
  a window that will be covered with shrink wrap.
  The purpose of the windows is to allow exposure
  of the inoculated agar plates to UV rays and
  Alpha particles.
• Each compartment will contain an inoculated agar
  plate mounted to the side of the box. Each plate
  will be exposed to a different set of adverse
  conditions, as follows
• On the hot side, the insulated non-windowed
  compartment will be exposed to low O2.
• On the hot side, the insulated windowed
  compartment will be exposed to low O2, and UV
  Rays/ Alpha particles.
• On the cold side, the non-windowed compartment
  will be exposed to minus 80 degree Celsius
  temperatures and low O2.
• On the cold side, the windowed compartment will
  be exposed to minus 80 degree Celsius
  temperatures, low O2, and UV Rays/ Alpha
  particles.
• Parts Ordered and arrived

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Payload Sketch Diagram

• Sketch

• Functional Block Diagram

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Schedule

• Date
• Scheduled Events
• September 29, 2009
• Media creation for extreme temperature
  durability testing
• October 6, 2009
• Prototype payload construction for insulation
  testing
• October 9, 2009
• Continued prototype payload construction
• October 13, 2009
• Document preparation
• October 16, 2009
• Insulation cutting for cold test prototypes
• October 20, 2009
• Insulation installation for cold test in
  prototypes
• October 23, 2009
• Final assembly of all prototypes for insulation
  testing
• October 27, 2009
• Heater unit construction
• October 30, 2009

• November 17, 2009
• Construction of prototype for stair, whip, and
  drop tests, and stair, whip, and drop testing
• November 20, 2009
• Stair, whip, and drop test review and
  adjustments/re-testing
• December 1, 2009
• Launch preparation critical review
• December 4, 2009
• Flight simulation testing
• December 8, 2009
• Flight simulation test review and
  adjustments/re-testing
• December 11, 2009
• Continued simulation/launch preparation as
  needed
• December 15, 2009
• Final launch preparation
• January 15, 2009
• Launch readiness review
• January 16, 2009
• Launch
• January 17, 2009

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Stress Tests

• Whip Test
• Confirm the strength of the tether apparatus that
  passes through the satellite.
• Using mass simulators to replace the actual
  components of the satellite, a cord will be
  strung through the tether apparatus and swung
  wildly around in circles. The forces induced on
  the satellite will be similar to those it will
  experience during the flight, and this test will
  indicate whether or not it will hold together
  under such stresses.
• Cold Test
• Test to ensure survivability of our payload,
  heaters, and media when exposed to extreme cold
  conditions, and to determine the best insulation
  for use in our final payload.
• We will be using a -80 C freezer at Fitzsimmons
  Research Laboratory to determine whether or not
  our heaters will withstand the temperatures we
  expect, and keep the heated side of our payload
  sufficiently warm. We will also be using the
  HOBO Datalogger and probe to determine how
  different the temperature remains on the heated
  and unheated sides of the payload to identify the
  most effective insulation for our final payload
  construction. Additionally, we will be testing
  bacterial growth media with various
  concentrations of agar to determine which is best
  suited to extreme cold.

• Stair Test
• Test of the structure. This has been shown to be
  an accurate portrayal of the impacts the
  satellites endure upon returning to the ground
  and being dragged through a field for a number of
  yards.
• With mass simulators replacing the internal
  components of the satellite, it is taken to the
  top of a set of stairs and set on the ground.
  Once placed, the satellite is then kicked down
  the set of stairs to test many harsh impacts at
  random angles on every side of the satellite.
• Drop Test
• Structural test used to ensure that the satellite
  will remain in one piece after it is abruptly met
  by the ground at high velocity upon the end of
  its descent from high altitude.
• Using mass simulators again, the satellite is
  taken to a high spot on campus from which it will
  be dropped. Releasing the satellite from a
  balcony or window high off the ground will
  replicate the high speed it will be descending at
  and thus replicate the impact it will endure.

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Budget

• Monetary Budget

• Mass Budget

• Foam Core 150g
• 9V Batteries x 4 136g
• Heater Circuit x 2 60g
• Switches x 2 15g
• Bacterial Culture Plates x 4 80g
• Insulation 80g
• Aluminum Tape 30g
• Attachment Tube 10g
• American Flag Sticker 2g
• HOBO Datalogger 40g
• Shrink Wrap 3g
• Total Estimated Mass 606g

• Foam Core 65
• 9V Batteries x 12 30
• 9V Battery Connectors x 4 10
• Connecting Wires 10
• Switches x 2 10
• Temperature Probe 35
• Aluminum Tape 15
• Insulation 30
• Shrink Wrap 15
• Agar/Culture Plates 30
• Chromosome Prep Reagents 120
• PCR Reagents 30
• Gel Electrophoresis Plates 60
• Total Estimated Cost 460

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Expected Results

• Due to the short duration of flight, we
  acknowledge that the period of exposure to the
  conditions we are expecting may prove to be too
  brief for any major mutations to occur. If
  mutations do occur, the expectation is that they
  will be observed in the heated, radiation-exposed
  compartment of the payload. In the cold side, we
  expect the E. coli to deep freeze, preventing
  cellular respiration, fermentation, and
  reproduction. With all of these processes
  arrested, we believe mutation is less likely, as
  mutation often involves secondary intracellular
  activity following genetic damage, which would be
  unlikely in a deep frozen state.
• After flight, we expect to retrieve data that
  illustrates which factors prove the most
  mutagenic. The lab protocols we will run include
  restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP)
  and genetic sequencing before and after launch to
  scan the bacterial genome for changes indicative
  of mutation.

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Team Organizational Chart