Author: Bill Tandy
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cFE Event Service
The Event Services module lets you send, filter, and log event messages. These are time-stamped messages that can be given labels such as Debug, Informational, Error, and Critical.
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cFE Time Services
People who have launched and operated spacecraft all agree: Getting the time correct is incredibly difficult. It’s so difficult and tricky to keep everything on time that it bears repeating in bold letters: Do not underestimate how hard it is to work with time on spacecraft.
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cFE Software Bus
Vehicles have all sorts of data zipping around. Your sensors are collecting information, your functions want information, you want to send information… managing the chaos is easy when you only have a few things going on. But the problems get increasingly wild with every new feature you add.
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cFE Executive Services
Every system (including our brains) has some core component within them that keeps the lights on. It keeps the heart pumping, watches to make sure everything else is working, and helps higher-level components succeed. One of the benefits of adopting an architecture like cFS instead of a “Super Loop” that cascades from function to function…
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Why not use cFS?
The Core Flight System can save your team many (many) months of work. And it’s a flexible framework that lets you use it on many types of projects. However, it has its weaknesses.
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Why use cFS?
The Core Flight Software ecosystem is high-quality, certified by NASA, and freely available. It would take teams of programmers years to develop the same capability on their own.
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What is cFS?
It’s worth pointing out that it’s not just space missions using cFS. Drones and underwater vehicles are using it. And people are looking at it for robots. When you spend the time to understand cFS, you’re developing a career skill that will make you valuable to all sorts of programs.
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Setting up Linux
The apps we recommend all run on Ubuntu Linux. Some run on any POSIX operating system, some can run on Windows, and some can run on cloud platforms. We recommend, though, that you go with Ubuntu since it works for everything.
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Batteries
All spacecraft use batteries. They’re used, for instance, at the beginning of a mission to power everything until solar panels and nuclear devices are started. In this article, we’ll talk about the different types and then talk a bit about how to size your battery system.
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Hiring Foreign Workers
The space industry would love to hire more foreign workers. Desire is not the problem!