Darpa Pheonix
Honeybee Project #308
Of the 3,700 satellites that orbit our planet, 2,600 are no longer functional. Those 2,600 satellites exist in a celestial junkyard known as graveyard orbit; but unlike a junkyard, they contain billions of dollars in reusable components. In 2010. DARPA launched their ambitious Phoenix Program that aims to give these functional components new life. The centerpiece of the Phoenix Program is a robotic servicing satellite capable of combining new nano satlets with older arrays and antennas to create new satellites all while orbiting the earth at speeds of 10,000mph. In 2012 Honeybee was selected to build two subsystems for the Phoenix Program and over the last two years I have been privileged to work with a team of engineers to design the Satlet Grasper Tool (left) and the Universal Gripper Anchor. You can read more about our tools here and more about the program here.
