Arizona State University — Tempe¶
SST org page for Arizona State University (ASU), Tempe, AZ. Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI).
Last updated: 2026-04-14 (session 18)
SST Footprint¶
| Project | PI | Period | TRL | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 106810 DORA — Deployable Optical Receiver Aperture | Daniel V. Jacobs | 2020–2024 | 3→7 | flew (ISS deploy Oct 8, 2024) |
| 94030 THz Receiver for CubeSat Remote Sensing | Christopher E. Groppi | 2016–2018 | 3→5 | no-visible-outcome |
Two independent PIs, two independent labs, two unrelated technologies. DORA is optical communications; THz Receiver is submillimeter-wave instruments. The only connection is ASU as institutional home.
DORA — Deployable Optical Receiver Aperture¶
The Technology¶
A novel CubeSat-form-factor deployable optical receive system for inter-spacecraft communications: - 1 Gbps optical data rates at 1,000–10,000 km range - ≤10–20° pointing accuracy (vs. arcsecond-level for traditional optical comms) — DORA's large collecting area relaxes pointing requirements dramatically - Built with COTS components (low cost) - Designed for swarm crosslinks, constellation communications, and surface-to-orbit links (LunaNet concept) - 3U CubeSat form factor
Flight History¶
- ISS deploy: October 8, 2024 (launched on SpaceX CRS-31, August 2024)
- 56-day orbital lifetime — extreme Solar Cycle 25 activity caused rapid atmospheric drag. Reentered after 54 days.
- Pointing system commissioning took ~1 month. Blown LNA at ASU ground station added delay.
- Optical comms experiment curtailed — with only ~1 week before predicted reentry, attitude control commissioning was cut short and radio payload activated.
- Radio Background Experiment (RBE1) succeeded — VHF spectrometer mapped 2–4 meter radio band, identified quiet zones. Power measurements confirmed correct spectrometer operation and excellent signal chain stability.
- Data collected via SatNOGS network — high-speed downlink offline due to ASU ground station reception issues.
- SmallSat 2025 paper on orbital decay rate analysis under high solar activity.
Assessment¶
DORA is a partially successful flight. The spacecraft operated, the radio science payload worked, but the primary optical communications experiment was not fully demonstrated due to the compressed 56-day timeline. The technology (TRL 3→7 per TechPort) was validated through ground testing and integration; the on-orbit demo was truncated by external factors (solar activity) and ground segment issues (blown LNA).
Architectural significance: DORA's relaxed pointing requirement (10–20° vs. arcseconds) is a genuine innovation for CubeSat optical comms. If proven on orbit, it would remove the biggest barrier to smallsat laser crosslinks — the need for expensive, heavy, power-hungry fine pointing systems. The concept remains valid despite the truncated demo. Confidence: confirmed (ISS deploy, SmallSat 2025 paper, SatNOGS data collection).
DORA in Context¶
DORA sits in the SST optical communications lineage alongside: - OCSD 11587: 200 Mbps downlink (Aerospace Corp, 2012–2018) → TBIRD - TBIRD (PTD-3) 106821: 200 Gbps world record (2022) - CLICK 94065: Laser crosslinks (MIT, flew 2022, B/C NET Q2 2026) - MOCT 94153: Pulse modulator for crosslinks (UF Conklin)
DORA's unique contribution: large-aperture, lax-pointing optical receiver. Complementary to CLICK's precision pointing approach.
THz Receiver — Submillimeter Remote Sensing¶
The Technology¶
Micromachined Schottky diode receivers for the 520–600 GHz terahertz band: - Reduced mass and volume by >10× compared to state-of-the-art - Targets: water and atomic oxygen detection (astrophysics, planetary science, Earth science) - TRL 3→5 in 2 years
PI: Christopher Groppi¶
- ASU School of Earth and Space Exploration, experimental astrophysicist
- Runs "Groppi Labs" — THz/millimeter/submillimeter technology
- JPL collaboration: TeraCube project Co-I (JPL-led). Groppi's TechPort email is @jpl.nasa.gov, suggesting a split appointment or close collaboration.
- Focus: imaging arrays of THz spectrometers for ground-based and suborbital telescopes
- No visible downstream from the SST project specifically, but Groppi continues active THz research
Assessment¶
Standard academic instrumentation development. TRL 3→5, no flight, no commercial product. The technology serves niche astrophysics applications (star formation, interstellar medium) with small addressable markets. Groppi's JPL connection provides a pathway for future mission instrument proposals but no SST-specific transition confirmed. Confidence: confirmed (no downstream).
Institutional Notes¶
- MSI designation: ASU-Tempe is classified as HSI (Hispanic Serving Institution) on DORA and AANAPISI (Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian) on THz Receiver. Both diversity-serving designations.
- JPL collaboration: Both projects list California as a state — JPL is the external partner on DORA and the institutional connection for Groppi.
- Student involvement: DORA was built and operated by amateur radio enthusiasts and undergraduate students at ASU. Avionics designed by undergrads. This distinguishes DORA from most SST missions (typically PI/postdoc-built).
- ASU Interplanetary Initiative — university-wide program supporting space research; DORA featured prominently.
Publications¶
- IEEE Aerospace Conference (2022): "Development of a Deployable Optical Receive Aperture" (Jacobs et al.)
- IEEE Aerospace Conference (2024): "Ground Terminal Evaluation for DORA" — gimbal pointing and beam divergence results
- IEEE Aerospace Conference (2025): "Integration and Delivery of the DORA CubeSat" (pre-launch)
- SmallSat Conference (2021): "Creating Reliable Software Systems for the DORA CubeSat"
- SmallSat Conference (2025): "Effect of High Solar Activity on the Orbital Decay Rate of the 3U CubeSat DORA"
- NTRS 20230005792: "Development of a Deployable Optical Aperture"
- MIT thesis: "Ground Station Mixed-Signal PCB and SFP Ethernet-to-Optical Connector for DORA" (MIT student contribution)
Cross-References¶
- Smallsat Communications & Navigation — DORA in optical comms lineage
- Thermal, Power, Sensors & Instruments — THz Receiver
- High-Profile Missions — DORA flight
- JPL — DORA collaboration partner, Groppi THz connection
- University & Academic Outcomes — MSI contributions
Key Takeaway¶
ASU Tempe has one clear SST story: DORA's innovative lax-pointing optical receiver flew but was curtailed by solar activity. The 56-day orbital lifetime is the SST portfolio's first flight significantly impacted by external environmental factors — a cautionary tale for ISS-deployed CubeSats during solar maximum. DORA's technology concept (large aperture, relaxed pointing) remains architecturally significant and complementary to precision-pointing approaches like CLICK. The THz Receiver is standard academic instrumentation with no SST-specific downstream.