14 DAY TRIAL // The Astro Pi is an original Raspberry Pi that's been modified to go into space and the mission to take it there is about to launch in just a couple of months.
There is no denying that Raspberry Pi is one of the best and most used mini-PCs ever made, even if it has a lot of competition. You can do pretty much anything with it, starting with teaching children how to program or setting it up as a media center, to more complex stuff like robotics. Its flexibility made it a success and it looks like the second version, which is more powerful, is getting even more attention.
The makers of the Raspberry Pi couldn't just send it up into space, onboard the ISS (International Space Station), and let people figure out how it works, even if it's the way it's pretty much done on Earth. They had to build a special case for it that looks amazing, they had to mount a battery to keep the settings (it won't connect to the Internet), it needed to have a very low output of EM and infrared radiation, and so on. Now, the Astro Pi is done, and it's almost ready for launch.
The Astro Pi is awesome
The reason the first version of the Raspberry Pi is going to space is because the preparations for ISS, which are quite extensive and time-consuming, have started long before its launch. The efforts of the team are nearing their end.
"Those of you who regularly read our blog will know all about Astro Pi. If not then, to briefly recap, two specially augmented Raspberry Pis (called Astro Pis) are being launched to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of British ESA Astronaut Tim Peake’s mission starting in December. The launch date is December the 15th. Last year we joined forces with the UK Space Agency, ESA and the UK Space Trade Association to run a competition that gave school-age students in the UK the chance to devise computer science experiments for Tim to run aboard the ISS," said David Honess.
The journey for the Astro Pi has been a long one, but it looks like it's coming to and end, or a new beginning, depending on where you count from. In theory, the two Astro Pis that will reach ISS will be functional for many years until their batteries run out.