A GPS Receiver Designed for Cubesat Operations

Australia has recently developed a renewed interest in space related activities with the establishment of the Australian Space Policy Unit. As part of this interest, a research program has been initiated via the Australian Space Research Program (ASRP) funding grants. The School of Surveying and Spatial Information Systems (SSIS) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) was successful in gaining ASRP funding for the “Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Formation Flying” project, also known as the Garada. As the name suggests, the program involves undertaking research into flying satellites in formation. The project has several industry partners and collaborators, including Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO), BAE Systems, Astrium, and General Dynamics Corporation Ltd (New Zealand). The Garada collaboration has led to SSIS involvement in another collaborative cubesat mission spearheaded by DSTO, known as Biarri. The Namuru V3.2 GPS receiver described in this paper is aimed at satisfying the requirements for Biarri and Garada.