FENRIR

Project FENRIR was initiated in the fall of 2023 by five master’s students. The goal of the project is to develop an easy-to-construct, low-cost, and modular platform that can be deployed from a sounding rocket to conduct experiments in a reduced gravity environment. The platform is designed to be reusable and easily adaptable for various types of experiments. It can also be retrieved after launch, making it a practical solution for future research projects.

Project structure

The work is divided into four main areas:

• Mechanics – Responsible for designing and constructing the platform’s mechanical components.
• Electronics – Focuses on developing and integrating the electronics required to operate the platform.
• Software – Develops the software needed to control the platform and handle data from the experiments.
• Science and Payloads – Works on developing and adapting the two experimental payloads to be conducted on the platform during the launch in March.

Participants in the project have various roles: some work on it as part of a course, others contribute in their free time, and one member uses the project as the basis for their thesis work.

Launch and preparations

The launch is scheduled for March 2025 from Esrange, a Swedish space base. The event will span two weeks: the first week will focus on testing the platform and ensuring everything is operational before the launch. If adjustments are needed, there will be time to make them during this period. In the second week, the team will await the “launch window” when the rocket can be sent up.

Objectives and impact

The primary goal of Project FENRIR is to create an affordable and modular open-source platform that can be used by future student projects to perform experiments in reduced gravity, without the need to develop a new platform from scratch. Each year, around 8–10 student projects participate in the REXUS program, where sounding rockets are launched to conduct experiments. Many of these projects require a platform that can be released during the flight, but currently, no ready-made solution exists.

“Our platform will reduce the work needed to design and construct a platform, allowing projects to focus instead on their experiments,” says Alexander Hollmark, project leader of FENRIR.

Modularity has therefore been a key focus in the FENRIR project.

“It should be easy to remove our experiments and insert new ones without requiring major changes to the hardware or software. Conducting experiments in a reduced gravity environment is crucial from a space perspective to understand how different materials behave in space. For example, how fuel spreads in a tank without gravity. In our project, we will investigate how a phase-change material behaves in this environment,” Hollmark explains.

International collaboration

Student projects like these engage many students in Kiruna, and since they can literally involve rocket science, they cannot be completed in a short time. This means the projects, which can span several years, often involve multiple generations of students working together to complete them.

Not only do these projects bring together students from different generations, but also from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds.

“The space industry is international, and it’s very common to work with people from different cultural backgrounds. Everyone in our project has enjoyed meeting and getting to know new people, and it’s also been a great opportunity to learn to collaborate with one another,” says Wilma Arvidsson.

Scope and lessons learned

The team has grown significantly since the project began and now includes about 20 members from several European and Asian countries. For everyone involved, the project has been a significant learning experience, both technically and organizationally.

“Working in a large team has taught us a lot about project management, collaboration, and the importance of clear communication. At the same time, we’ve been able to apply our theoretical knowledge in practical situations, which has been both challenging and rewarding,” says Wilma Arvidsson.