The MAI Pre-University students invented a safety system for the International Space Station (ISS)
“The idea came to us when we were watching the “One Year in Orbit” program on the Science 2.0 YouTube channel,” says Aleksey Grishin. “We decided to develop a completely autonomous system, and its task would be to save the entire station if one of its modules is damaged. It measures various parameters with sensors: pressure, temperature and others, and in case the critical values are obtained, it activates the automatic shutdown of all modules. Until the problem is localized, it is impossible to open any of the modules. In the future, only the captain of the ship will be able to open the "dangerous" module."While working on the project, the students divided the tasks into two groups. Alexey was in charge of the software part, and Dmitry was in charge of the electronics. Currently, the operating model of the system is almost ready: the work is carried out in "Takeoff Trajectory" – the MAI Children's Technopark.
“We took the security algorithm that is used in the submarine fleet as a basis,” says Dmitry Elovsky. “If an abnormal situation occurs onboard - fire, for instance, the crew must close the corresponding compartment. As far as we know, there is no system on the ISS that could do this automatically. So, our development might really contribute to the enhancement of safety in space. As the authors of the project say, the system might be used in other areas, for example, in the oil and gas industry."
“The system parameters may be changed depending on its operating conditions” explains Alexey. “For example, it may be able to record gas leaks and close the rooms using the same principle”.The authors are going to present their project to experts at the XLVII International Youth Scientific Conference "Gagarin Readings" at the end of April. If the start would be successful, Alexey and Dmitry plan to continue their work on the system, expand its functionality and application possibilities.
