When choosing a processor for space computing, there are many factors that come into play: because of the rigors of a harsh environment, developers must find the optimal balance between size, weight, power and cost. An important variable in this design is the processor architecture, which can have a significant impact on balancing performance and power consumption.
Students at the University of Pittsburgh’s NSF Center for Space, High-performance, and Resilient Computing (SHREC) examined the RISC-V architecture for space computing and presented their results at the 2021 IEEE Space Computing Conference. They were awarded the Best Paper Award for Research in Space Computing for their work.