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Make Your Own Sputnik

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the because-you-can dept.

An anonymous reader writes "What better way of celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sputnik than by making one of your own. The BBC says that you can build your own Sputnik satellite from stuff lying around the house. The BBC quotes an electronics hobbyist: "Technology now is way ahead of what was available in 1957, and making your own fully functional Sputnik would now be very simple indeed. I wouldn't be surprised if you could build one in a container smaller than a matchbox, weighing about as much as a wristwatch. The components, including a transmitter, battery and the sensors you'd need would probably cost less than 50 pounds [about 100 US dollars]. It really shouldn't be a problem to build and program the whole thing in under a day." Unfortunately, the BBC article doesn't go into technical details." And of course, actually getting it up into orbit might take a little more work.

41 of 118 comments (clear)

  1. Oops... by Hanners1979 · · Score: 4, Funny

    I misread the word 'Sputnik' and sat here thinking "But I already do that every night"...

  2. Choices by kevmatic · · Score: 5, Funny

    So, do I make my own Helicopter or my own Sputnik? Hmm...

    I say Helicopter. Cooler and Deadlier.

    1. Re:Choices by CRCulver · · Score: 4, Funny

      I say Helicopter. Cooler and Deadlier.

      I'd go with the sputnik. If you can get something into orbit, you can rain atomic destruction onto any spot on Earth, unless the leaders of the world pay you ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

    2. Re:Choices by Jugalator · · Score: 2, Funny

      Seriously, I almost wish that we one day have some madman to try pull such an extortion off with some spacecraft.

      Maybe I should be careful what I wish for, but come on, crimes need to be made funnier!

      --
      Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
    3. Re:Choices by Kamineko · · Score: 2, Funny

      Why restrict yourself to just one?

      Make a sputnicopter.

  3. No problem by djupedal · · Score: 4, Funny

    "And of course, actually getting it up into orbit might take a little more work. "

    I know a guy that makes home-made helos' that has the first 7 feet covered - after that...two words: space elevator.

    1. Re:No problem by tverbeek · · Score: 2, Funny

      And in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the first Sputniks, the BBC will post instructions for how you can build your own Sputnik 2 at home... including the dog.

      --
      http://alternatives.rzero.com/
  4. How about going Old School? by fataugie · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Wouldn't it be cooler to build it with authentic to the era parts and pieces? It would be like a scavenger hunt meets science class. Sadly, it's beyond me and my capabilites.

    I do have a line on a bunch of old vaccum tubes that have been in storage for years....

    --

    WTF? Over?

  5. oblig. by Rob+T+Firefly · · Score: 2, Funny

    This reminds me of the heady days of Sputnik and Yuri Gegarin...

    --
    Slashdot Burying Stories About Slashdot Media Owned
  6. Didn't we find out... by Kjella · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...back in the last Sputnik story that the entire idea of a real science probe was pretty much scrapped due to time pressure, and that they launched pretty much only a radio transmitter? Building that primitive beacon wasn't the impressive thing at all, putting it into orbit was.

    --
    Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    1. Re:Didn't we find out... by aadvancedGIR · · Score: 5, Insightful

      A science probe? Didn't the only goal of that think was to say "See that blipping thing over your head? Next time, we could send a nuke anywhere on the planet"

    2. Re:Didn't we find out... by Lumpy · · Score: 2, Informative

      Exactly and changing the "beep" depending on temperature was not "programming" but how temperature worked on resistors to the timing circuit. Sputnik was 100% analog.

      --
      Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    3. Re:Didn't we find out... by the+bluebrain · · Score: 2, Informative

      1) Accelerate to approx. 35 times the speed of sound
      2) Release (preferably in an upward direction)

      Sheesh. Jules Verne already knew that. ;)

      --
      yes, we have no bananas
    4. Re:Didn't we find out... by John+Meacham · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Actually, there was another important scientific discovery that sputnik allowed. It was designed to transmit on two different frequencies, 20MHz and 40MHz. Since different radio frequencies are affected differently by the ionosphere, it was possible to observe things about the ionosphere that wern't possible before such as its electron density.

      --
      http://notanumber.net/
  7. Besides imagining a beowulf cluster of those... by jayminer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ...is there really any possibility to launch it to the orbit from my backyard?

    Can I do it with, say, $10,000 and without getting caught?

    1. Re:Besides imagining a beowulf cluster of those... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      Talk to the folks at the Civilian Space eXploration Team. They put an amateur rocket in space (not orbit, though) a few years back.

      See:
      http://the-rocketman.com/CSXT/default.asp
      http://www.ddeville.com/derek/CSXT.htm

    2. Re:Besides imagining a beowulf cluster of those... by Klaus_1250 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You might, given the fact that you only need to carry a "matchbox" into a low orbit. But it will still be a hell of a job and lots of trail and error. The bigger problem you will have is that you will have to do it without hitting anything (civilian jets, satellite's, etc), as it might set you back a few hundred million dollars if you manage to do so.

      --
      It only takes one man to change the Wisdom of the Crowd to Tyranny of the Masses.
    3. Re:Besides imagining a beowulf cluster of those... by Robonaut · · Score: 2, Interesting

      How many people would seriously want to do this, say launch something ~100cm^3 & 100 grams for ~10K? If 10 people/groups would sign up, not only would they get their stuff in space, but they could help out a university team doing some of the heavy lifting Comments? Suggestions? Reservations?

  8. Yay! More litter! by avronius · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Perhaps they should be encouraging someone to create a powerful electro-magnet satellite sweeper to surf the orbital zone and "pick up" the junk that is whistling around out there, rather than encouraging Joe Average to add his own litter to the fray.

    DISCLAIMER:
    No, I have not thought this through.

    But, it would be interesting to see -something- done about the problem before the garbage makes extra-terrestrial travel even more dangerous than it already is...

    1. Re:Yay! More litter! by Dr.+Eggman · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I have thought this through (kind of) and decided at the speeds the garbage is going, a magnet is either going to have very little effect or if it does collide, the garbage will blast the magnet to pieces and create even more junk.

      --
      Demented But Determined.
    2. Re:Yay! More litter! by $RANDOMLUSER · · Score: 4, Funny

      DISCLAIMER:
      No, I have not thought this through.
      Have you considered a career in politics?
      --
      No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
  9. Because Sergei Korolev is no big deal nowdays. by Picass0 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    (rolls eyes)

    Anybody with a public school education can outclass Werner Von Braun or Sergei Korolev with chewing gum and duct tape!

    Please.

    1. Re:Because Sergei Korolev is no big deal nowdays. by wizardforce · · Score: 4, Funny

      I don't know, the man was aiming for the moon and hit london after all

      --
      Sigs are too short to say anything truly profound so read the above post instead.
  10. Getting into Orbit... by Decius6i5 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...may be expensive but if you can fit the electronics inside of a ping pong ball you can at least get it close for free.

  11. Pee Wee by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 2, Funny

    You could even build one yourself, as Paul Rubens explains below.

    Looks like Pee Wee finally found a new gig, after that sex scandle and all...

    --
    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
  12. What the hell would you need a fan for? by SirStiff · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Good luck getting the fan to do any "cooling" in space. And with today's instrumentation efficiency, there's probably not a whole lotta need to worry about cooling.. I'd be more worried about keeping things heated above -40 deg C to maintain operating temperature.

  13. This is ridiculous by philmack · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The article is not remotely about building a sputnik, but it is about how technology in sputnik served similar purposes to things used in the home. Using a baby monitor as a transmitter? a domestic thermostat? a balloon? a mercury thermometer? "4x large batteries"? come on. This sounds like the losing science fair project of a seven year old.
    ~Phil

  14. next article by JeanBaptiste · · Score: 3, Funny

    Make your own Internet! You will need 100 feet of twine, 4 dixie cups, and some duct tape.

  15. Orbit by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "And of course, actually getting it up into orbit might take a little more work. "

    Actually, it is probably a crime in most jurisdictions.

    --
    Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
  16. Now there's an image to ponder... by TaleSpinner · · Score: 2, Insightful

    > And of course, actually getting it up into orbit might take a little more work.

    I'd be careful about saying that. While nerds may be in a minority everywhere they are found, in aggregate they are still a numerous and clever breed prone to accepting challenges like that. DJGPP came about because Stallman said it wasn't possible to run gcc under DOS. The thought of hundreds of thousands of sputniks in low earth orbit is scarey. :)

  17. very nice! by trb · · Score: 4, Funny

    Home-made Sputnik, I Laika!

  18. I want to do this... by Upaut · · Score: 4, Interesting

    And have it play "Orange Crush" by REM... It would drive the RIAA totally insane if there is a pirate signal from space they can't find to take down... Heck, some solar panels expanding from the altoids tin, and an ipod shuffle, it could really be an achievment...

    --
    3 degrees of separation from Vladimir Putin
  19. Indeed... by Gibbs-Duhem · · Score: 2, Informative

    Some MIT hackers did just that. It's beeping instead of transmitting, but ya know =)

    http://hacks.mit.edu/Hacks/by_year/2007/sputnik/

  20. Entirely feasible by wsanders · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Entirely feasible, the Sputnik was basically a low power (QRP) transmitter. AFAIK it had no other payload. Ham radio operators have been making these for years:

    http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/qrpprojs.html

    It did beep faster/slower as temperatures rose/fell, I think, which you could basically implement using normal temperature variations in off the shelf resistors and capacitors.

    --
    Give a man a fish and you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and he'll say "WHERE'S MY FISH, YOU IDIOT?"
    1. Re:Entirely feasible by wsanders · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Well, if you have a 50 quid budget, that's like 500 US dollars, so just put a GPS and camera in it, and voila, you can become part of the growing and popular hobby of sending your payload into space on a baloon:

      http://www.qsl.net/w5sjz/ntxballoonproject.htm
      http://www.jpaerospace.com/

      Plus hundreds of other links . . .

      --
      Give a man a fish and you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and he'll say "WHERE'S MY FISH, YOU IDIOT?"
  21. Getting it in orbit may not be so hard by enaiel · · Score: 2, Informative

    Wasn't there a Dutch dude who got his amateur transponder launched as a secondary payload on an Indian PSLV rocket. Quite possibly there are more rockets with spare lifting capacity that might launch your homebrewed Sputnik. Might be worth the good publicity for them.

  22. sputnik? no. Launcher? hell yeah. by apodyopsis · · Score: 2, Funny

    make your own DIY sputnik? Maybe.....

    but I'd rather make my own DIY "rocket that launched it". Now thats got all the ingredients that makes any self respecting geeks eyes light up!!

  23. On getting it into space... by Isao · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If you work with Amsat you can have your work shot into orbit. There are about 18 currently in operation, with launches starting in the 60's. Amsat is an international organization.

    1. Re:On getting it into space... by spaceyhackerlady · · Score: 2, Interesting

      The very first non-government satellite was AMSAT's own OSCAR-1.

      The very first secondary payload was OSCAR-1. When other people thought they might be able to hitch a ride in to orbit the way AMSAT did, the Authorities suggested they look at how AMSAT did it.

      The free rides in to orbit aren't as plentiful as they once were, but are based on one of two things: either stuff little satellites in to areas of the launch vehicle where "real" satellites won't fit, or take advantage of launch vehicles having excess capacity, since it's easier to build a really big rocket and launch a few tonnes of sand in to orbit along with your satellite than to have to reengineer your rockets every couple of years as satellites get bigger.

      The launch system manuals are all available on line and make interesting reading - lobbing a satellite in to orbit is not trivial. You can read about little ones like Pegasus or great big ones like Ariane 5.

      There are also people who make payloads that look and behave like satellites, but send them up on balloons instead.

      ...laura

  24. You can build a spaceship from the things you find by mtaht · · Score: 3, Funny

    The filk song "You can build a spaceship from the things you find at home" comes to mind.

    http://www.khaosworks.org/filk/spaceship.html

    Now next on my agenda was to find a rocket drive
    Strong enough to launch the ship and still keep me alive
    I found the right propellant when I scouted out the bars
    Six kegs of Old Peculier that will shoot me to the shtars! *hic*

    (chorus) Lockheed, Bell and Boeing, MDC and Grumman too
                Pratt and Whitney, BAE, they'll keep it all from you
                They make big bucks off NASA so they never want it known
                That you can build a spaceship from the things you find at home!

  25. Electronics vs. Radiation in space by Schraegstrichpunkt · · Score: 4, Informative

    The BBC quotes an electronics hobbyist: "Technology now is way ahead of what was available in 1957, and making your own fully functional Sputnik would now be very simple indeed. I wouldn't be surprised if you could build one in a container smaller than a matchbox, weighing about as much as a wristwatch. The components, including a transmitter, battery and the sensors you'd need would probably cost less than 50 pounds [about 100 US dollars]. It really shouldn't be a problem to build and program the whole thing in under a day."

    Oh, that old meme.

    Trivia: What is the probability that off-the-shelf microelectronics (like wireless routers) will work in space? Answer: Roughly zero.

    Why? Look at the information starting at page 23 on this document: Spacecraft Charging and Hazards to Electronics in Space:

    3. Radiation Effects on Spacecraft Electronics

    The radiation sources discussed are hazardous to electronics since energetic particles can deposit energy inside microelectronic circuitry and disrupt their proper operation. Energy deposition in electronics is measured in rads(M) where M is a specific material being considered (1 rad = 100 ergs/gm). Energy deposition can be in the form of ionization or atomic displacements, which can permanently damage electronics, or it can be in the form of single events, which can cause transient or permanent damages depending on the severity of the event.

    NASA doesn't ship Xeon processors into space, not because of budget cuts, but because they don't work reliably (if at all) in space.

    --
    http://outcampaign.org/