Born on Maui and raised completely āoff of the gridā in Huelo on the North Shore, Charles Marley Rutkowski has learned to mature and develop from the unique obstacles with which he has been presented. Growing up removed from modernity has presented him with distinct opportunities and challenges. Taking advantage of his background, Marley strives to equip himself with the knowledge and skills necessary to make an impact in the world. Marley is currently studying Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Portland in Oregon.
Home Island: Maui
Institute when accepted: University of Portland in Oregon
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Akamai Project: MODTRAN Atmospheric Transmission Modeling for Daylight Satellite Tracking Site Assessment
ProjectĀ Site: Oceanit
Mentor: Rita Cognion
Observing satellite movement against a bright daytime sky is difficult, therefore optimal viewing conditions are essential.Ā MODTRAN (MODerate resolution atmospheric TRANsmission) is a computer program designed to model the propagation of electromagnetic radiation through the atmosphere.Ā By modeling potential sites using MODTRAN, we will be able to identify the optimum locations for the placement of daylight observing cameras.Ā Ā Archived weather and radiosonde data must be compiled into the proper MODTRAN input format for the desired simulations.Ā By distributing the hundreds of MODTRAN simulations necessary to model a single day across the cores of multiple high-speed servers, we were able to perform simulations in just a few hours that might otherwise take over a week.Ā Outputs from MODTRAN of atmospheric radiance and transmission can then be used to determine a siteās suitability for the detection of a satellite against a bright sky.Ā Future analysis of the data from each potential site will allow identification of the most favorable sites for the placement of daylight satellite viewing devices.