Mission lesson
Find the pass. Plan the contact.
Stage 1 of 7
Mission
Who you are, what you are finding out, and what success looks like.
Showing stage 1 of 7: Mission
Mission
A satellite can only talk to a ground station while it is above the horizon. That window is short, and it does not happen on demand. Your team will work out when the next window opens, plan what to do with it, and stay honest about the difference between being in view and actually getting the data.
When can a ground station see the satellite — and does seeing it mean you got the data?
- Your role
- Mission communications planner
- Objective
- Find a modeled visibility window and make a contact plan without claiming signal reception or data delivery.
- Success looks like
- Run the short and extended windows, identify where a pass appears, select evidence, and keep visibility separate from reception and decode.
Learning outcomes · Grade 6
What you should be able to do, and the evidence that shows it.
- 01By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to describe what a ground track shows about where a spacecraft travels over the Earth, and demonstrate this by pointing to the modelled path on the mission map.
- 02By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to explain why a spacecraft is only in view of a ground station for part of its journey, and demonstrate this by writing a prediction about the chosen observation window.
- 03By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to state whether the mission found a modelled pass in the selected window, and demonstrate this by reading the pass result directly from the mission evidence.
- 01By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to describe the difference between seeing a spacecraft pass overhead and receiving a message from it, and demonstrate this by stating which of the two the mission actually shows.
- 02By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to explain why a ground station and a spacecraft must be arranged for contact to be possible, and demonstrate this by describing the sender, receiver and message in the mission scenario.
- 03By the end of this mission, the learner will be able to recognise that this mission does not prove any data was received, and demonstrate this by writing one sentence about what would still need to be shown.
Preparation
Before we start
A quick check of what you already know. There is no score.
The idea behind the mission
The satellite keeps moving. A ground station can only reach it while it is above the horizon, so contact is a window that opens and closes, not a switch you flip.
In view is not the same as in contact
Knowing when a satellite passes overhead tells you when to try. It does not tell you that the radio link worked, or that the data arrived and could be read. Those are three separate things, and each needs its own evidence.
Predict before you run
Before you run anything: in a two-hour window, do you think the satellite will come into view at all? Say why.
Will the satellite come into view during the short window? Say what you expect and why.
At least 20 characters — say what you expect and why.
Readiness
This is a local preparation check. It is not Challenge qualification and creates no official attempt.
- Mission objective and success criterion reviewed: not done yet
- Preparation diagnostic answered: not done yet
- Mission theory reviewed: not done yet
- Prediction recorded: not done yet
The set-up you will run
This is the set-up you will run. It is fixed on purpose, so everyone in the class is reading the same evidence.
Baseline case
Short window (2 h)
- Write your prediction first.
- Run the short window before the long one — a window with no pass is a real result worth seeing.
- Nothing here shows a radio signal being received or data being read. Do not claim either.
Units stay attached to every result: angles in degrees (°), time in seconds (s), power in watts (W), energy in watt-hours (Wh), battery state in percent (%), and elevation in degrees (°) where available.
Finish every preparation item above first; then this can be confirmed.
Official qualification: false. This acknowledgement stays in this browser.
Operate
Readiness required
Complete every preparation requirement, then confirm readiness before operating the Twin.
Run the short window first. If nothing appears, that is a real result — then run the longer window and see what changes.
Baseline
Short window (2 h)
- Short window (2 h): not run in this session yet
Evidence
Run a Digital Twin case first
The results fill in once the Twin has produced evidence. The decision, limits and knowledge check can be read now.
Read the evidence
Compare the two windows. What appeared, when, and how high above the horizon did it get?
Run the Twin to produce evidence.
Complete
Readiness required
Finish the required run or comparison, select evidence, make a decision and answer the knowledge check. Then reflect here and finalize.
Completion records the work you did; it does not mean mastery, qualification, or an official grade.
Reflect
Which part of your contact plan is supported by the model, and which part still needs measured radio evidence?
At least 20 characters. Editing this or any source work after completion invalidates the local record.
Your formative result
Revisit the mission evidence
Formative · not an official grade
No formative evidence has been recorded yet.
Formative band: revisit. Any formative band may complete the mission. Official grade: none.
Finish the required run or comparison, select evidence, make a decision, answer the formative assessment, and complete your reflection.
Recognition
Lane C provides a private local-practice record. Verified recognition remains a separate Platform workflow.
Complete the mission first
Finalize the mission to create a local-practice record on this device.
Finalize the mission to create a local-practice record on this device.
Home mission
Home mission: three honest steps
Write a three-step plan for talking to a satellite as it passes overhead. Next to each step, mark whether it is something you can plan from a map, something that needs proof the radio worked, or something that needs proof the data arrived.