A Project in his Memory
As part of a collaboration between the Technion and Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI), a project dedicated to the memory of the late Captain (res.) Denis Krokhmalov Veksler has been established
Captain (res.) Denis Krokhmalov Veksler z”l
Captain Krokhmalov Veksler was due to begin his studies this year in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at the Technion but fell in battle in the Gaza Strip on January 8, 2024.
The project to develop a communications satellite is led by Dr. Hillel Rubinstein from IAI, and Dr. Oded Golan, academic supervisor of student projects in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering. The development of the satellite is the final project of a group of students from the faculty. The satellite will carry a detector for measuring gamma radiation, developed at the Technion’s Faculty of Physics. The satellite is called NOVA-SAT, in commemoration of the events of October 7th.
An illustration of the NOVA-SAT satellite
The satellite will perform measurements using the GALI (Gamma-ray Burst Localizing Instrument) detector developed at the Technion’s Faculty of Physics. This device is designed to detect bursts of gamma radiation, a product of the explosion of stars at the end of their lives, supernovae, and mergers of neutron star pairs. Since such astronomical events are difficult to locate, there is a worldwide effort to develop innovative detectors that will identify them and their locations. The GALI detector allows for precise identification of the direction of the burst, a feature characteristic of only of giant satellites rather than small systems. The detections it provides will enable astronomers worldwide to point telescopes at the event, study the burst, and link it to other events such as gravitational waves. The model that NOVA-SAT will carry was built by PhD student Julia Saleh-Natur.
Top row (l to r): Omer Kalitzky, Eden Shmuel, Livnat Butbul, Or Yehezkel, Nechama Holdengreber, Shai Peled, Edos Osazuwa, Benjamin Muchnik, Ilaie Nadejde, and Omri Dror.
Bottom row (l to r): Ori Eyeny, Yarden Milshtein, Yuval Levy, and Dr. Hillel Rubinstein.
Captain Krokhmalov Veksler was a respected athlete who immigrated to Israel at the age of 17. He lived in Be’er Sheva and served as an officer in the elite Yahalom (Diamond) engineering unit of the IDF Combat Engineering Corps. Despite being injured during triathlon training after his military service, Denis insisted on continuing to serve in the reserves while simultaneously pursuing his dream of studying aerospace engineering at the Technion.
The NOVA-SAT project embodies the vital connection between industry, education, and national memory.