RAMSESS

Main Goals of the Project

The RAMSESS project (RAdiation Measurement Sensor with Enhanced Sensibility for Space exploration) refers to a small CubeSat mission to be launched into a Polar Earth Orbit, outside the magnetosphere - an environment considered relevant for interplanetary missions. It is well known that space missions, both interplanetary and in low Earth orbit (LEO), become critical when operated outside the Earth’s magnetosphere due to the effects of space radiation, which can be hazardous for spacecraft electronics and/or for a human crew.
The main sources of radiation are high-energy particles from the Sun (or interacting with it), namely protons and electrons trapped in the inner and outer Van Allen belts. Additional sources include galactic and extragalactic cosmic rays, as well as anomalous cosmic rays.

To this end, the project includes the design, development, and launch of a 6U CubeSat that will operate for about 2 years before naturally deorbiting within the following 3 years. The payload onboard is an innovative radiation detector capable of performing selective dosimetry of the radiation environment.

The main objective of the project is the validation of this innovative dosimeter, developed by the private company Due2Lab, based on the CdZnTe semiconductor (Cadmium-Zinc-Telluride, hereafter CZT) and designed to simultaneously measure the total absorbed dose, the energy, and the nature of each single interaction event (distinguishing among X- and Gamma-ray photons, electrons, protons, ions, and neutrons). The sensor, currently at TRL 5, will be raised to TRL 8 through validation during an orbital mission; the resulting “buy-and-fly” payload can thus be used for future missions operating in more challenging radiation environments.

CIRA, together with a partnership comprising industrial partners and universities, is designing both the mission and the spacecraft platform suitable for the mission requirements (solar panels, attitude control system, etc.) in order to host the CZT payload. The developed platform is compatible with the main launch vehicles currently available on the market (Vega, Falcon, etc.).

CIRA Activities in the Project

CIRA, as the Prime Contractor of the RAMSESS project, is primarily acting as technical and programmatic coordinator for the partnership of companies and universities.

Specifically, CIRA plays a key role as the technical authority for the design of both the mission (including orbital conditions) and the spacecraft platform that will host the radiation-measuring payload.
With respect to mission design, following the update of ESA guidelines on debris mitigation, the selection of orbital parameters has become particularly critical, as it must satisfy two opposing requirements: making the orbit representative of a significant radiative environment (scientific goal of the mission) while ensuring the natural deorbiting of the satellite within 5 years after insertion.

Moreover, CIRA is responsible for all numerical analyses (structural, thermal orbital, etc.) essential for mission design, for qualification to launch loads, and for securing a launch service compatible with the mission and payload requirements.

General Project Information

Funding Programme: ALCOR, funded by ASI

Start Date: 13/09/2024; End Date: Phase B concluded in mid-November 2025. Phases C and D currently under negotiation with ASI. Satellite launch planned for 2029

Official Project Website: https://www.asi.it/tecnologia-ingegneria-micro-e-nanosatelliti/micro-e-nanosatelliti/il-programma-alcor/ramsess/

Coordinating Organization: ASI

Partners: CIRA, IMT srl, Due2Lab srl, KAYSER IT srl, Università Federico II di Napoli, Politecnico di Milano

CIRA Contact: Giovanni Radio, g.radio@cira.it