Space System Architecture and Design
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this graduate-level course on how spacecraft and satellite systems get architected before they are built. Lectures, readings, and discussion cover existing space system architectures and the classical methods used to design them, then move into multi-attribute utility theory as an alternative design paradigm. The course pairs this with integrated concurrent engineering practices and methods for searching large architectural tradespaces efficiently. Sessions also address designing for flexibility under uncertainty, along with policy and product development issues that shape real space programs. Materials come from MIT's Aeronautics and Astronautics and Engineering Systems Division and are free to access under an open license, with no certificate offered. The course suits students who already have engineering background and want exposure to the frameworks used to evaluate competing satellite and spacecraft designs.