UI computer chips orbit earth, gather data

POST FALLS – Satellites on a NASA mission to measure the earth’s magnetic field are using computer chips designed by scientists at the University of Idaho’s Research Park.

The chips were selected last year for inclusion on the three satellites. They’re radiation-resistant – an important trait on a mission that will collect data for future studies of how solar radiation affects the earth’s magnetic field. The chips also operate on a fraction of the energy needed to run conventional chips.

NASA launched the satellites in March. They’ll spend at least three months orbiting the earth and gathering data.

UI’s chips will help ensure that the data coming from the satellites is accurate, said Jody Gambles, associate director of UI’s Center for Advanced Microelectronics and Biomolecular Research in Post Falls. Interference – sort of like radio static – distorts the data stream sent by the satellites, he said. The chips correct the transmission errors and allow receivers to recover the original information.

Twice-weekly progress reports from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration have been positive, according to Gambles. “Our chips are functioning flawlessly,” he said.

The chips were produced at AMI Semiconductors in Pocatello, Idaho, and they represent about eight years of research. UI researchers got involved in designing chips and finding ways to produce them cheaply at commercial plants after the Cold War, when the U.S. government shut down military labs, Gambles said.

Over the years, UI researchers have gained a reputation for space electronics. Gary Maki, director of the Center for Advanced Microelectronics and Biomolecular Research, has amassed more than $27 million in government contracts and research grants over two decades.

The three satellites using the chips are part of NASA’s Space Technology 5 mission. The satellites weigh 55 pounds each when they’re fully fueled, and are about the size of a 13-inch TV. They started out a few meters apart, but will move up to 125 miles apart to gather multi-point measurements of the earth’s magnetic field.

According to NASA, data collected on the mission will be used for future studies of how solar activity affects the earth’s magnetosphere – the magnetic bubble that surrounds the planet and helps protect it from harmful radiation.