Surveillance Hardware for Arctic Defense and Examination
SHADE
Project Executive Summary:
The SHADE program has been specifically designed to operate throughout the harsh environment of the arctic region, and meet the needs the International American and Canadian Organization for high-Latitude Defense (IAMCOLD). This organization is composed of United States and Canadian Air Force and Coast Guard personnel, and pursues their goal to observe and protect the arctic region. As the ice mass recedes and global temperatures continue to rise, this region will become more exposed than ever before, leaving it open for increased activity as well as possible exploitation. There is currently little to no infrastructure allocated to patrolling or monitoring the arctic; the SHADE program has been developed to fulfil this role.
IAMCOLD is specifically focused on the continuous monitoring of commercial activity such as shipping and fishing, detection of foreign military incursions into U.S. and Canadian waters, search and rescue operations, and the ability to adapt and expand to both the changing environment and emerging technology. The SHADE program was designed to meet all of these needs by implementing advanced but proven technologies to carry out the mission, as well as utilizing existing infrastructure to support the system. The system will feature both a primary operating base and control center in mainland northern Canada to place the center of the SHADE program in a more temperate region. Farther north, three forward operating bases have been strategically placed throughout the arctic surveillance region to ensure full coverage of the area and maximum efficiency during operations.
The aircraft that has been designed to carry out the mission for IAMCOLD is the Frostbite. Featuring a diverse payload package designed for both wide area coverage as well as high resolution imagery and low-frame rate video, the Frostbite can fly for 20 continuous hours at a range of 6000 nautical miles at 40,000 feet of altitude. With its high efficiency wing at a cruise Lift-to-Drag ratio of 23, a wing area of 256 square feet, and a twin engine configuration, the 11,000 pound aircraft is optimally suited to operate throughout the vast arctic region reliably and efficiently. The system and the aircraft have also both been designed to be easily upgraded and expanded into the future through simple design and implementation of systems both onboard the aircraft and on the ground. This low cost, efficient, reliable, and simple system is the optimal solution to the problem of lacking surveillance capabilities in the arctic region.
My Input:
My personal input to the project included mission goal formulation, user and stakeholder need research, requirements development/tracking/validation, concept of operations refinement, ground station design layout, sensor capability calculations, graphics and presentation design/development/layout as graphic design lead, assisted other group members in their work, and more.