CHAIRMAN'S REPORT 1994 Laying the Foundation MARK BLAIR INTRODUCTION During 1994 the Australian Space Research Institute achieved significant milestones in pursuit of our objectives leading to the development of a vigorous National Space Program. We have also seen a marked increase in the level of ASRI program activity with the largest number of student projects undertaken to date. The paragraphs below provide a look at the year in review. PROJECT UPDATES ASRI project work increased more than 50% during 1994 making it our biggest year ever. The current ASRI projects cover a broad range of space technology fields at various levels of complexity. These projects cater for the involvement of students from the high school level through to university post graduate level. The current status of the ASRI programs is provided below. CARATEL - Experimental Liquid Fuelled Vehicle The majority of the vehicle systems are now complete including the propulsion system, fins, recovery system, payload module and avionics. Further systems integration, test and evaluation is to be carried out in the near future. Regular meetings have been held every 2 weeks by the Caratel working group at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS). The Caratel flight trial is planned for 1995, pending the successful completion of final systems tests in both Sydney and Melbourne. AUSROC II-2 - Liquid fuelled Demonstration Vehicle. The development of Ausroc II-2 hardware has been progressing at a steady pace, with the final assembly of the vehicle structure now essentially complete. Final assembly was conducted at the Melbourne Facility where it is currently undergoing a series of component testing. The electronics module is now complete and is in the process of being extensively tested. At the completion of the preliminary testing in January, Ausroc II-2 will be transported to ASRI's Adelaide Facility for a comprehensive series of vehicle tests. HQ-Australian Defence Force has approved ASRI's request to use the Woomera Rocket Range in South Australia for the Ausroc II-2 launch which is planned to take place in the first week of May 1995. Trials planning is now well underway with the RAAF-Aircraft Research and Development Unit (ARDU). AUSROC III - Developmental Sounding Rocket. Student involvement in the Ausroc III program reached 30 this year, making the most successful year to date. Test rigs for the hydraulic motor gimbal system and the cold gas roll control system have been designed and tested by students at Adelaide University. Several 3rd year students have also completed preliminary design work for the Ausroc III rocket motor and filament wound tanks. The launch pad, tower and supporting ground infrastructure component designs made significant progress at the University of Southern Qld. and the manufacture of these items will occur in 1995. Students from Sydney University have made significant progress on the Ausroc III nose cone and fairing design and manufacture with the assistance of Hawker de Havilland. Tooling for the nose and fairings has been manufactured and test items are to be manufactured within months. Prototype circuit boards for the telemetry system have been manufactured by students from the University of South Australia and are in the process of being tested. Queensland University of Technology students have been working on issues related to range safety, impact prediction, tracking and flight termination. This system will be implemented at the Woomera Range in support of the Ausroc III flight safety requirements. In addition to these student projects, numerous ASRI members were involved in providing technical assistance and advice to the students, as well as undertaking various other projects. AUSROC IV - Satellite Launch Vehicle. A solid fuelled rocket development program was initiated by students at Adelaide University to develop a composite solid propellant for the Waxwing I upper stage rocket motors which have been donated to Ausroc by Royal Ordnance in the UK. We expect to have these motors delivered from the UK early in 1995. This program has also looked into the mounting and separation aspects of the Waxwing motor as the 3rd stage in Ausroc IV. AUSTRALIS-1 - Micro-satellite. The projects completed by students in 1994 include the solar panels design work from UNSW and the telemetry systems and system reliability analysis work conducted at QUT. A number of members have also continued with developmental work on the IRIS imaging system, system architecture, structural design layout and coordination activities throughout the year. ASRI, in conjunction with QUT and Auspace, is pursuing an international collaborative microsatellite program with the Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) from Indonesia. Several grant applications are currently being processed to allow a delegation to travel to Indonesia for discussions in the near future. ASRI was also one of the key proposers for a Major National Research Facility submission to establish a small satellite systems facility at the University of South Australia. Scramjet Program Students from the University of Queensland have designed and analysed various aspects of a prototype scramjet demonstration system. Fields of study included trajectory simulations, fuel system design, composite structures, instrumentation and combustor design. This has led to the construction of a full scale engineering mock-up. Hypersonic Test Vehicle Program The Hypersonic Test Vehicle (HTV) mission study was successfully undertaken by ASRI, UQ and DSTO staff to address the technical and operational issues related to the conduct of atmospheric flight trials of prototype scramjet motors. This study was submitted to both UQ and the ASO for funding consideration. Sighter and Zuni Rocket Motor Educational Program We are now in the final stages of receiving approval from RAAF for the transfer of 400 surplus Sighter rocket motors (3") and 200 surplus Zuni rocket motors (5") to ASRI for educational program use. These motors will be stored at the Woomera magazine for future use. Inert samples of both motors are now available for payload module development. Several payloads are presently being developed for demonstration trials to coincide with the Ausroc II-2 launch campaign at Woomera in May 1995. QUT has established a large student project group from their avionics engineering course to design, manufacture and flight test Sighter rockets and payloads from the Army's Wide Bay test range in Queensland. These trials are to be conducted in April 1995. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FACILITIES Since its inception, ASRI has been searching the nation for facilities and services to support the space engineering developmental work it undertakes. The ASRI directors declared 1994 as 'Infrastructure Year'. This has resulted in the formation of ASRI mechanical workshops in both Melbourne and Adelaide. The Melbourne workshop is located in Noble Park and consists of machining equipment generously provided to ASRI on long term loan from the CSIRO Office of Space Science and Applications. This facility has approximately 40 sq.m of floor space. The Adelaide facility is located in Salisbury and the building consists of 11 work bays and 650 sq.m of floor space. The building, which was previously used as a rocket motor integration building has been leased to ASRI from the Department of Defence. Machining equipment, which has been provided to ASRI on long term loan from the DSTO Scientific and Engineering Services, has been moved into the building for manufacturing support. This facility can be used for the integration and systems testing of all the ASRI launch vehicles and payloads. Thus, ASRI now has the technical and facilities base to fully support its project work. These facilities are enabling ASRI to further its 'hands-on' approach to space technology education. ASRI PROGRAM SUPPORT I would like to take this opportunity to pass on my thanks and appreciation to all those individuals, companies and government departments who have shared our vision of a vigorous National Space Program for Australia and have provided us with financial, technical and personal assistance. Without this assistance we would not be able to undertake the programs that we do. The current government agencies which are supporting ASRI include: Australian Space Office (ASO) CSIRO Office of Space Science and Applications (COSSA) Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) Explosives Ordnance Division (EOD) Scientific Engineering Services (SES) Department of Defence Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) The current commercial organisations supporting the ASRI programs include: Ardebil Pty. Ltd. Australasian Rocket Engineers (ARE) Australian Space Insurance Group (ASIG) Commonwealth Industrial Gases (CIG) Davidson Pty Ltd Hawker De Havilland (HdH) Paradynamics Russell Engineering Pty. Ltd. The last, but by no means the least, source of program support comes from the multitude of private individuals who have given their own time and personal resources to assist in the fulfilment of the Institute's activities. It is this very resource and its' enthusiasm that led to the creation of the Australian Space Research Institute and which will sustain it in the future. CONCLUSION Earlier this year, the Australian Space Council (ASC) released it's new Five Year Plan for a National Space Program. This plan presents a number of strategies and actions to be implemented by the Australian Space Office (ASO) in the coming years. These strategies and actions are aimed at delivering improved goods, services and commercial opportunities to the Australian people from the space sector, where it is cost effective or more beneficial to do so. I believe that ASRI has a responsibility to conduct educational programs for the national good and, indeed, our programs reflect this responsibility. Many of our programs specifically address some of the strategies and actions layed out by the ASC in the 5 yr plan and can contribute significantly to them. In the future, we should endeavour to tailor our programs to further meet the national and commercial requirements of the time and to provide the students and members with training directly applicable to real needs. In all, 1994 has been a most productive year for ASRI. We have been able to lay a sound foundation of academic, industrial and governmental support to carry us into the future an I look forward to the expanding and successful years ahead. "Quam Difficilis Potest"