SPARK is a formally defined computer programming language based on the Ada programming language, intended for the development of high integrity software used in systems where predictable and highly reliable operation is essential. It facilitates the development of applications that demand safety, security, or business integrity.
Vermont Technical College is a public technical college in Vermont with its main campuses in Randolph Center, Williston, and Norwich. In addition, there are regional campuses in Brattleboro and Bennington, and nursing campuses in six locations throughout the state.
A CubeSat is a type of miniaturized satellite for space research that is made up of multiple cubic modules of 10 cm × 10 cm × 10 cm size. CubeSats have a mass of no more than 1.33 kilograms (2.9 lb) per unit, and often use commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for their electronics and structure. CubeSats are commonly put in orbit by deployers on the International Space Station, or launched as secondary payloads on a launch vehicle. As of 1 January 2021, more than 1350 CubeSats have been launched. More than 1200 have been successfully deployed in orbit and more than 90 have been destroyed in launch failures.
Explorer-1 [Prime], also known as E1P and Electra, was a CubeSat-class picosatellite built by the Space Science and Engineering Laboratory (SSEL) at Montana State University. It was launched aboard a Taurus-XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California on 4 March 2011, but failed to achieve orbit after the rocket malfunctioned.
Radio Aurora Explorer (RAX) is the first National Science Foundation sponsored CubeSat mission. The RAX mission is a joint effort between SRI International in Menlo Park, California and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The chief scientist at SRI International, Dr. Hasan Bahcivan, led his team at SRI to develop the payload while the chief engineer, Dr. James Cutler, led a team of students to develop the satellite bus in the Michigan Exploration Laboratory. There are currently two satellites in the RAX mission.
Launch Services Program (LSP) is responsible for NASA oversight of launch operations and countdown management, providing added quality and mission assurance in lieu of the requirement for the launch service provider to obtain a commercial launch license. It operates under the Human Exploration and Operations (HEO) Mission Directorate of NASA.
RAX-2 is a CubeSat satellite built as a collaboration between SRI International and students at the University of Michigan College of Engineering. It is the second spacecraft in the RAX mission. The RAX-1 mission ended after approximately two months of operation due to a gradual degradation of the solar panels that ultimately resulted in a loss of power. RAX team members applied the lessons learned from RAX-1 to the design of a second flight unit, RAX-2, which performs the same mission concept of RAX-1 with improved bus performance and additional operational modes. Science measurements are enhanced through interactive experiments with high power ionospheric heaters where FAI will be generated on demand.
Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment (CSSWE) was the sixth National Science Foundation sponsored CubeSat mission. It was built by students at the University of Colorado at Boulder with advising from professionals at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. The CSSWE mission was a joint effort by the University of Colorado's Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences and Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. The mission principal investigator was Prof. Xinlin Li, and the Co-PIs are Prof. Scott Palo and Dr. Shri Kanekal. The project manager for the project was Dr. Lauren Blum, the system engineer was Dr. David Gerhardt, and the instrument scientist was Dr. Quintin Schiller.
Technology Education Satellite (TechEdSat) is a class of CubeSats built by San Jose State University and University of Idaho students in partnership with NASA's Ames Research Center. These satellites have tested communication technology for smallsats, and have contributed to the development of the Small Payload Quick Return (SPQR) concept.
Electron Losses and Fields Investigation (ELFIN) is a nanosatellite developed by University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). ELFIN is a 3U+ CubeSat designed to study space weather, specifically, the loss of relativistic electrons in the radiation belts. ELFIN was a participant in the Air Force Research Lab's University Nanosatellite Program and is currently funded by NASA's Low Cost Access to Space program and the National Science Foundation.
Lunar IceCube is a planned NASA nanosatellite orbiter mission to prospect, locate, and estimate amount and composition of water ice deposits on the Moon for future exploitation by robots or humans. It will fly as a secondary payload mission on Artemis 1, the first flight of the Space Launch System, planned to launch in 2021.
ArgoMoon is a nanosatellite that will fly on NASA's Artemis 1 mission into a heliocentric orbit in cislunar space on the maiden flight of the Space Launch System and the Orion spacecraft, in 2021. The satellite has the dimensions of a shoe box in CubeSat terms, it is a 6U.
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.
CubeSail is a low-cost spacecraft propulsion demonstration mission using two identical 1.5U CubeSat satellites to deploy a 260 m (850 ft) long, 20 m2 (220 sq ft) solar sail ribbon between them. This mission is a first in a series of increasingly complex demonstrations leading up to a full-scale UltraSail heliogyro by the University of Illinois and CU Aerospace.
Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) is an initiative created by NASA to attract and retain students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. The program is managed by the Launch Services Program (LSP) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
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.
DAVE (CP-7), or Damping And Vibrations Experiment, 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.
Simulation-to-Flight 1 (STF-1) is a microsatellite built by the Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility (IV&V) in Fairmont, West Virginia with the collaboration of the West Virginia Space Grants Consortium and West Virginia University.
Passive Inspection CubeSats, or PICS, is a technology demonstration spacecraft mission utilizing two CubeSat miniaturized satellites, identified as PICS-1 and PICS-2. The project was developed by students at Brigham Young University (BYU) as part of NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNA) initiative beginning in 2016. The satellites are outfitted with cameras to be able to get a 360-degree view to visually assess the exterior of other spacecraft and detect possible damage. BYU professor David Long termed the project a "spacecraft selfie cam."
