• Optics is hard
  • The biggest thing we’ve learned so far is Optics is harder than you think it is - there’s a lot of technical depth to things (see the acronyms page for all those details). The point is that doing the learning for the optical systems is not something that we can leave for the last minute, so if we want to create design requirements for an optical system it’ll take a while.
  • Important things to consider: Create an optical budget for any camera based module that we create, as well as doing a factor analysis on lenses
• Plan early and often!
  • Planning is incredibly important, especially when it comes to tasks - there’s no point in investigating something that’s already a dead end. Since we only have a limited amount of manpower, it’s important to use it in a manner that’s efficient.
  • Important things to consider: Make sure the timeline and task board are up to date and maintained
• Components selection is important
  • Components selection is important and it takes a long time - don’t underestimate how long it will take and ensure that it’s done properly. We had to redo our initial camera selection due to some constraints that were missed, namely interfaces with the OBC and the camera pixel sizes. We consulted with an expert and determined our initial selection process was not in depth enough, and had to find a different camera.
  • Important things to consider: Talk to experts in the field as much as possible to get feedback on the selection process, especially if it’s something that you’re not an expert in. The earlier and more consistent this is, the better!
• Don’t leave documentation to the last minute
  • Documentation is something the team has struggled with for a while (and we’re still not fully up to date). This has made work more difficult for new members, since a lot of the decisions we made and work we did was undocumented and we had no way to catch them up with the work that had been done.
  • Important things to consider: Keep what you work on up to date on notion! If we abandon or select a line of inquiry, then note down the reasons why and ensure that the documentation on that is up to date.
• Organization can make or break a team
  • Organization was something that the subteam really struggled with last term - with a new lead and subteam, the task board was a mess, we didn’t have a timeline, and it was unsure what the team would be working on. As a result, the team really struggled with getting things done for the first month or two.
  • Important things to consider: Have a long term plan and update as required! Things will change as requirements are fleshed out, so keep that in mind when making a plan.