Cosmic 2 / Formosat 7

COSMIC-2 also known as FORMOSAT-7, is a constellation of satellites for meteorology, ionosphere, climatology, and space weather research. FORMOSAT-7 is a joint US-Taiwanese project including National Space Organization (NSPO) on the Taiwanese side and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the United States Air Force (USAF) on the US side. Six Formosat-7 satellites of the constellation were launched 25 June 2019 on a Space X Falcon Heavy rocket. They reached their designated mission orbits in February 2021, after eighteen months of gradual orbital adjustments. Full operational capability was achieved in October 2021.

Gediz was one of the engineers responsible for structural analysis of the spacecraft platform for launch vibroacoustic, quasi static launch, thermal and lift and handling load cases. He also correlated spacecraft and unit level Finite Element Models against measured test data for various test campaigns on the project. Having worked on the project from concept to build, Gediz’s work majorly contributed to the development of this spacecraft and overall mission success.

Image credit: Surrey Satellite Technology Limited