Engineers at NASA's
The volleyball-sized Miniature Autonomous Extravehicular Robotic Camera, or Mini AERCam, is designed to help astronauts and ground crews see outside a spacecraft during a mission.
During ground-based testing, the device, which is just 7.5 inches in diameter and weighs 10 pounds, was able to work with a docking system that serves as an exterior home base for housing and refuelling the nanosatellite.
NASA believes that the Mini AERCam could provide beneficial on-orbit views that can't be obtained from fixed cameras, cameras on robotic manipulators, or cameras carried by space-walking crewmembers. For Shuttle or International Space Station missions, Mini AERCam could support external robotic operations by providing views of spacewalk operations to flight and/or ground crews and carrying out independent visual inspections.
Inside the craft is a rechargeable xenon gas propulsion system, a rechargeable lithium ion battery, custom avionics based on the PowerPC 740/750 microprocessor, and "camera-on-a-chip" imagers with video compression and micro electromechanical system gyroscopes.
First seven members join NG’s Great Grid Partnership
Agreed. It is all pretentious posturing and trite branding with no meaning or gravitas. Prepare to be disappointed by all of these greats/grates.