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A CubeSat is a class of miniaturized satellite with a form factor of 10 cm (3.9 in) cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than 2 kg (4.4 lb) per unit, and often use commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for their electronics and structure. CubeSats are deployed into orbit from the International Space Station, or launched as secondary payloads on a launch vehicle. As of December 2023, more than 2,300 CubeSats have been launched.
Spacecraft operating in the inner Solar System usually rely on the use of power electronics-managed photovoltaic solar panels to derive electricity from sunlight. Outside the orbit of Jupiter, solar radiation is too weak to produce sufficient power within current solar technology and spacecraft mass limitations, so radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) are instead used as a power source.
The United States Naval Academy (USNA) Small Satellite Program (SSP) was founded in 1999 to actively pursue flight opportunities for miniature satellites designed, constructed, tested, and commanded or controlled by Midshipmen. The Naval Academy's aerospace laboratory facilities are some of the most advanced and extensive in the country. These facilities include structures labs, propulsion and rotor labs, simulation labs, wind tunnels with flow velocities ranging from subsonic to supersonic, computer labs, and the Satellite Ground Station. The SSP provides funds for component purchase and construction, travel in support of testing and integration, coordination with The US Department of Defense or National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) laboratories or with universities for collaborative projects, and guides Midshipmen through the Department of Defense (DoD) Space Experiments Review Board (SERB) flight selection process.
Technology Education Satellite (TechEdSat) is a successful nano-sat flight series conducted from the NASA Ames Research Center in collaboration with numerous universities. While one of the principal aims has been to introduce young professionals and university students to the practical realm of developing space flight hardware, considerable innovations have been introduced. In addition, this evolving flight platform has tested concepts for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) sample return, as well as planetary nano-sat class mission concepts.
PW-Sat is a series of Polish CubeSats designed and built by students at the Warsaw University of Technology in conjunction with the Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering of Warsaw University of Technology, the Space Research Centre of Polish Academy of Sciences, and the European Space Agency. As of January 1, 2024, there have been 2 PW-Sats with a third in development. The first PW-Sat was the first Polish artificial satellite which was launched 13 February 2012 from ELA-1 at Guiana Space Centre aboard Italian-built Vega launch vehicle during its maiden voyage. After their graduation, the team that developed the original PW-Sat have also worked to develop the subsequent missions, establishing a private company named PW-Sat to design and manufacturer the PW-Sats, all of which test novel deorbiting methods, with the overall goal of the program to develop solutions to space debris.
ESTCube-1 is the first Estonian satellite and first satellite in the world to attempt to use an electric solar wind sail (E-sail). It was launched on 7 May 2013 aboard Vega VV02 carrier rocket and successfully deployed into orbit. The CubeSat standard for nanosatellites was followed during the engineering of ESTCube-1, resulting in a 10×10×11.35 cm cube, with a volume of 1 liter and a mass of 1.048 kg.
EQUiSat was a 1U CubeSat designed and built by Brown Space Engineering, an undergraduate student group at Brown University's School of Engineering. EQUiSat's mission was to test a battery technology that had never flown in space which powered an beacon that was designed to be visible from Earth.
The Nanoracks CubeSat Deployer (NRCSD) is a device to deploy CubeSats into orbit from the International Space Station (ISS).
CubeSail is a proposed nanosatellite project by the Surrey Space Centre (SSC) in England. The spacecraft is to be a 3U CubeSat propelled by a 25 m²solar sail. The project is financed and technically supported by aerospace manufacturers Astrium and Surrey Satellite Technology.
Note: As of the school year of 2022, the Irvine CubeSat STEM Program has been shut down. The Irvine Public School Foundation (IPSF) has reallocated the CubeSat funding elsewhere and Brent Freeze has left the project to pursue other endeavors. This change could have resulted from the lack of productivity during the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of talented students. It is rumored that the program could return during the 2023 school year.
Irvine CubeSat STEM Program (ICSP) is a joint educational endeavor to teach, train and inspire the next generation of STEM professionals. ICSP involves students from six high schools from Irvine, California, and its main objective is to assemble, test, and launch a CubeSat into low Earth orbit.
IRVINE02 is an educational 1U CubeSat mission that gives high school students the experience of building, testing, and controlling a nano-satellite to develop interest and talent in the science and engineering fields. The mission features the second orbital ion electrospray thruster developed by Accion Systems. Beyond the thruster, IRVINE02 utilizes magnetorquers, deployable solar arrays, a GPS unit, and a miniaturized 1.4 Watt blue laser communication module to transmit pictures and data back to Earth. The magnetorquers and the laser are both developed by the Ecuadorian Space Agency. This laser made IRVINE02 the first 1U cubesat to fly with an orbit-to-ground laser communications device. It transmits data and pictures to the Earth much faster than radio.
The Damping and Vibrations Experiment (DAVE), also known as CP-7, is a technology demonstration nanosatellite developed by the PolySat laboratory at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, in collaboration with Northrop Grumman. The spacecraft adheres to the 1U CubeSat standard and is currently in a 93° inclination orbit. DAVE will study the vibration of metal beams damped with tungsten particles in a micro-gravity environment. The test elements are driven by a piezoelectric actuator, and vibration data is collected via an accelerometer at the tip of each beam. DAVE was launched into a high-inclination orbit as a secondary payload on the final flight of the Delta II launch vehicle as part of the ELaNa-18 ride-share mission with NASA's ICESat-2 primary payload. The launch occurred out of Vandenberg Air Force Base, California on September 15 at 6:02 AM local time. DAVE was deployed alongside three other CubeSat spacecraft: University of Central Florida's SurfSat, and two ELFIN spacecraft from University of California, Los Angeles.
IRVINE01 was a 1U CubeSat built by the Irvine CubeSat STEM Program (ICSP), a team of six high schools from Irvine, California. IRVINE01 was an educational mission that gives high school students the experience of building, testing, and controlling a nano-satellite, with the aim of developing interest and talent in the science and engineering fields.
Maya-2 was a Filipino nanosatellite. It succeeded Maya-1, the first Filipino nanosatellite, which was deorbited in November 2020.
SpaceX CRS-26, also known as SpX-26, was a Commercial Resupply Service mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched on 26 November 2022. The mission was contracted by NASA and flown by SpaceX using a Cargo Dragon. This was the sixth flight for SpaceX under NASA's CRS Phase 2 contract awarded in January 2016.
GASPACS was a NASA sponsored 1U CubeSat developed entirely by undergraduate members of Utah State University's Get Away Special (GAS) team. The primary mission objective of GASPACS was to deploy a 1-meter inflatable aerodynamic boom to passively stabilize its attitude. GASPACS was the world's first CubeSat to be developed entirely by undergraduate students, and was also the world's first CubeSat to utilize a Raspberry Pi Zero as its flight computer.
SpaceX CRS-27, also known as SpX-27, was a Commercial Resupply Service mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched on 15 March 2023. The mission was contracted by NASA and was flown by SpaceX using Cargo Dragon C209. This was the seventh flight for SpaceX under NASA's CRS Phase 2.
SpaceX CRS-28, also known as SpX-28, is a Commercial Resupply Service mission to the International Space Station (ISS) launched on 5 June 2023. The mission was contracted by NASA and flown by SpaceX using Cargo Dragon C208. It was the eighth flight for SpaceX under NASA's CRS Phase 2.
References
- ↑ "RHOK-SAT: A 1U CubeSat to Characterize Novel Photovoltaics in LEO". American Physical Society. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "NASA to launch Rhodes College satellite into space". AP News. 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "NASA Announces 12th Round of Candidates for CubeSat Space Missions". NASA. 7 April 2021. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "SPS Chapter Research Award 2023 - Rhodes College". Society of Physics Students. 6 March 2023. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "NASA selects Rhodes College for student-made satellite". Daily Memphian. 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "Finished Satellites Detail - RHOK-SAT". IARU. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ↑ "NASA to launch Rhodes College satellite into space". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2023-11-07.