ORSES Spacecraft

Provide communications and data capabilities for underserved tactical users based on SMDC-ONE.

Provide communications and data capabilities for underserved tactical users. Based on the SMDC-ONE satellite that flew in December 2010 and on the OUTSat mission with an upgraded communication radio and encryption.

The mission for ORSES was to demonstrate a new protocol, called LEOPARD, and validate the KI-55 Type-1 Cryptographic device for spacecraft. The LEOPARD protocol was designed to allow data transfer between ground terminals and LEO satellites without a priori knowledge of either asset’s position. 

In November 2013, an SMDC-ONE bus hosting an Air Force payload was launched as a secondary payload onboard a Minotaur 1 as part of the Operationally Responsive Space-3 (ORS-3) mission. The Operationally Responsive Space Enabler Satellite (ORSES) represented a joint effort between SMDC and the ORS office. The mission for ORSES was to demonstrate a new protocol, called LEOPARD, and validate the KI-55 Type-1 Cryptographic device for spacecraft

SMDC-ONE provided valuable telemetry data, demonstrated the retrieval and relay of Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) data, and relayed data files (text and images) between ground stations located at Redstone Arsenal, AL, and Colorado Springs, CO. Contact between the Ground Station at SMDC Huntsville and SMDC-ONE was made on the first orbit and maintained between the satellite and ground stations on every orbit except one during the orbital life. That one exception was due to operator error. The maiden SMDC-ONE accomplished all mission objectives and after 35 days on orbit, SMDC-ONE re-entered Earth’s atmosphere.

The payload radio was able to pull from either the battery or raw solar panel voltage thanks to the radio’s internal power controller. This allowed the payload radio to operate even after complete failure of the flight computer (FC) and Electrical Power System (EPS) Controller card. The SMDC-ONE flight computers were prone to on-orbit resets and all experienced total flight computer failure within months of on-orbit operation.

In November 2013, an SMDC-ONE bus hosting an Air Force payload was launched as a secondary payload onboard a Minotaur 1.

• Black Knight 1
• CAPE-2
• ChargerSat-1
• COPPER
• DragonSat 1
• Firefly
• Ho‘oponopono 2
• Horus
• KySat-2
• NPS-SCAT
• ORS Tech 1
• ORS Tech 2
• ORSES
• PhoneSat 2.4a
• Prometheus 1-1
• Prometheus 1-2
• Prometheus 1-3
• Prometheus 1-4
• Prometheus 1-5
• Prometheus 1-6
• Prometheus 1-7
• Prometheus 1-8
• SENSE SV1
• SENSE SV2
• SwampSat
• TJ3sat
• Trailblazer
• Vermont Lunar Cubesat