Everything built by themselves

HTL students aim high with satellite

from left: Jakob Schaumberger, Laurin Lintner and Frederick Wögerbauer present the "heart" of the satellite. The fourth member of the team, Manuel Nöbauer, was unfortunately unable to attend.(Bild: Einöder Horst)

LeoSat is set to soar high up into the stratosphere. The satellite, which was developed and built by four students at HTL Leonding as part of a diploma thesis, is to transmit data and photos during its high-altitude flight. If all the relevant authorities give the green light, the launch should take place on Tuesday.

The milled aluminum cube is only around 1000 cubic centimeters in size and weighs 717 grams. It contains all kinds of high-tech: ten measuring instruments for a wide range of data measurements, plus several GPS transmitters to make it easier to find. All of the instruments are built in-house, only the circuit boards, which were developed in-house, were manufactured in China.

Huge effort
Instead of the 180 hours of work per head required for a diploma thesis, the four students, who were supervised by three professors and financed by three sponsors from the private sector, stopped counting at 1000 hours. The development took 16 months and two school years, culminating in the satellite's flight lasting several hours on Tuesday. 

From left: Jakob Schaumberger, Frederick Wögerbauer, supervising professor Matthias Kurz and Laurin Lintner show off the satellite's polystyrene housing and parachute, which weighs barely two kilos.(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

From the left: Supervising professors Michael Wagner and Andreas Gallistl with the heart of the satellite(Bild: Einöder Horst)

The satellite was developed entirely by the team. Everything was also built by the students, only the circuit boards were manufactured in China.(Bild: Einöder Horst)

Practical experience gained
But why all this effort? "From the moment this idea was suggested to us in the third grade, we were hooked," explains Frederick Wögerbauer. Jakob Schaumberger agrees that the prospect of the start, the big goal, brought the four boys, who had previously known each other but had never worked together, closer together. Everyone had a specific area of responsibility, but: "Coordinating and agreeing with each other to make it happen was certainly one of the most difficult things!" says Wögerbauer. 

Start on Tuesday
If Austro Control, Linz Airport and the Austrian Armed Forces give the green light, the satellite will take off on Tuesday morning. Using a weather balloon, it will ascend to an altitude of around 36 kilometers, measuring numerous other data such as humidity and speed in addition to photos and videos. At the target altitude, the balloon will burst and the probe will gently sail back down on a parachute. According to current wind forecasts, it will land in the district of Freistadt, and several GPS transmitters should ensure that it is easy to find again. We wish you a safe flight!