science and technology as well as communication.
Sputnik I marked the beginning
of the space age.
After this remarkable beginning, every
country was interested in launching their
own satellite to space and achieving development
in their countries. After so many
years, in 2019, Sri Lanka was able to launch
its own satellite to space named “Raavana-1”.
The name of the satellite represents one of
the greatest monarchs in Sri Lankan history
who was known to have had expertise in
many fields, such as technology, aviation,
medicine, statecraft and music. It was appropriate
to name the first Sri Lankan satellite
after him as it is believed that he had
a flying machine called “Dandu Monaraya”
to fly into regions of his vast empire, which
was beyond the island too. However, Sri
Lanka was able to write its name in space
history by launching Raavana-1 with the
help of two young engineers, Tharindu Dayarathna
and Dulani Chamika.
By launching Raavana-1, five goals will
be achieved.
Tharindu Dayarathna is an Electrical and
Electronic engineer who graduated from
the Faculty of Engineering, University of
Peradeniya (2013-2016). He is a past pupil
of Pinnawala National School, Kegalle. After
graduation, he worked as a research engineer
at Arthur C. Clark Institute for Modern
Technologies. By the time of launching
the satellite, he worked as a space engineer
at Kyushu Institute of Technology.
On 18th February 2019, the satellite was
handed over to Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency (JAXA). Raavana-1 was sent
to the International Space Station on 17th
April 2019 and on 18th April 2019, it was
sent into space. And on 17th June 2019 satellite
was launched into the orbit. Along
with the launching of Raavana-1, a satellite
from Nepal was also launched. Raavana-1
will be orbited at an altitude of 400km and
it will be inside the third batch which is
known as BIRDS-3. This will take 15 pictures
per day. The type of the Raavana-1
satellite is CubeSat.IU. The volume of the
satellite is 1000cm3 and the mass is about
1.1kg. The estimated life span of the satellite
is one and a half years. Its launching
site is Virginia Cash.
1. Taking photographs of Sri Lanka and its near regions.
2. Testing Lora modulation for the demonstration of remote data collection and processing on
board. And also this will be used to download data and to control the satellite.
3. Testing a software method instead of hardware, when planning a satellite.
4. Taking earth magnetic field measurements.
5. Deploying Glue mission to find COTS alternative to expensive space glue and active altitude
stabilization and as a precursor to active pointing control for future CubeSat.
When considering the above goals, we all can hope for a significant development in
various areas, such as communication, science, technology, etc.
Tharindu Dayarathna has played a leading role in the launching procedure, bringing pride to
Sri Lanka as well as to the Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya. He was one of the
brightest students in the faculty who has gone through many obstacles
and finally he ended up bringing pride to our motherland. These
two young engineers have provided a great example for the younger
generation in Sri Lanka by proving that nothing is impossible if you
work hard on it. By following their path, we too can bring pride to our
country and can be a part of the development of the country’s future.
Minoli Suriyapperuma,
Final Year – Department of
Manufacturing and
Industrial Engineering,
Faculty of Engineering,
University of Peradeniya.
GAUGE Magazine
University of Peradeniya
Page
37