The Mission
Mission Statement
The Terrapin Engineered Rideshare Probe for Rapid-response Apophis Profiling, Tracking, Observing, and Reconnaissance (TERP-RAPTOR) is a flyby mission with asteroid (99942) Apophis during its close encounter with Earth on April 13th, 2029. In it's flyby, TERP-RAPTOR will image Apophis to analyze it's surface and structure.
Objectives
High-Level
- Capture high-resolution images of Apophis during a close-approach flyby in 2029
- Measure the size and shape of Apophis
- Downlink image data post flyby
Secondary
- Measure the Apophis' rate of rotation
- Measure effects of tidal resurfacing and mass wasting
Post Missions
- Share data with OSIRIS-APEX mission
- Provide measurements to ground-based observatories and research organizations for validation and refinement of known Apophis properties
- Showcase the capabilities of a university-led cubesat mission to a Near-Earth Asteroid
The Spacecraft
Mission Specs
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Hardware Specs:Mass: 20.63 KilogramsVolume: 9.9U (Total 12U)Power: 66.73 Watts max
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Mantis Imager:Optical RGB Camera0.5m GSD at 15.6 km, 60 FPS, 4 degree FOV
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Orion 12MP-550:Near-Infrared Camera0.16m GSD at 15.6 km, 100 FPS, 2 degree FOV
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HF Antenna:HF receiver sponsored by HAARP tuned to 9.6 MHz.
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Radation Tolerance:0.0021 (1/bit*day) with total radation lifetime of about 1 year.
The Team
Publications
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B. Barbee, A. Rudolph, C. Storey, C. Prasad, K. Bhingradiya, R. Vishnoi , R. Mahon, S. Philips, D. Akin, M. Bowden, and J. Young, "Mission Concept Development for the TERP RAPTOR (Terrapin Engineered Rideshare Probe for Rapid-response Asteroid Apophis Profiling, Tracking, Observing, and Reconnaissance)" AIAA SCITECH 2025 Forum, January 2025Link to paper
My Contributions
Flight Software
FPGA Design
