ANDE MAA LASER GENERAL DESCRIPTION: 10 Dec, 2006 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bob Bruninga, WB4APR The purpose of the lasers on ANDE is to provide an optical cue to the Maui Laser Ranging Station, an idea on the spin rate of the spacecraft. They are powerful 400 mw lasers at 810 nm but are no more visible to the eye than a simple red LED since the Eye cannot see above about 700 nm. But CCD cameras can. Since there is always amateur interest in trying, here is all the info we have on the lasers. We have an avid amateur astronomer who will help communicate bout this project. He is David B. Toth []. Here is the info on the 6 ANDE MAA lasers for general interest: Power is: 400 mw optical power Wavelength: 810 nanometers (near infrared) Each laser is pointed in one of the 6 orthogonal directions and simply has a truncated fiber optic cable at the surface of the spacecraft. THis truncated fiber will disperse the light over a cone of at least 45 degrees. Each laser is pulsed differently so you can tell the difference: Side A: 1.75Hz, 2.75Hz, 3.75Hz Side B: 1.50Hz, 2.25Hz, 4.25Hz The "on" time for each laser is 100msec/ pulse. For 400mw optical output, each laser needs 2V @ 720ma = 1.44 watts. The laser driver is 90% efficient. Thus, total power for each laser is 1.60 watts. The DC/DC converter module is 76% efficient. Thus, the total 12 volt input power needed per board = 4.95/0.76 = 6.513 watts. Total average current is about 300ma. Bob