Who are we?
We are second and third year students from the Finnish Kokkola upper secondary school. Our team consists of five students; Alex Hyytinen, Neea Oinas, Olivia Komulainen, Senja Hosionaho, Ville Ikola and our mentor Erkko Saviaro. We're united by the desire to learn new things and to put our current knowledge to the test.
Our mission
The satellites primary mission is to measure the surrounding temperature and pressure of the satellite. Our secondary mission is to investigate and measure the health of vegetation in the surrounding area and to map the environmental effects of a newly consturcted lithium mine in Kokkola. With the use of an infrared camera and the help from the technology connected with it, we can gather information on photosynthesis. Therefore we can evaluate the health of plants and estimate the overall enviromental effects.
Technology
The microcontroller used is the ESP32 Feather. The air pressure is measured with a bmp280 and temperature with a thermistor. The data collected during the flight is sent straight to the computer on the ground through Lora. Location of the satellite is acquired through the GPS.
FAQ
What is CanSat?
"CanSat is an initiative of the European Space Agency that challenges students to build a mini satellite, integrated within the volume and shape of a soft drink can. Thousands of students participate every year in CanSat National and European events, where they launch their CanSat on a rocket that goes up to 1km high."
Where TaigaSat comes from?
Our team name, TaigaSat, consists of two parts. The part "Taiga" refers to a biome known as the boreal forest which Finland mostly consist of. Because we study the impacts caused to the enviroment by the mining industry, "Taiga" was an incisive name for our team. On the other hand, the "Sat" -part comes from the abbreviation of the word satellite.
"Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet."
- Stephen Hawking
