Session
Session I: A Look Back: Lessons Learned
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
On January 31, 2019 the University of Southern Indiana UNITE CubeSat was deployed from the International Space Station and has transmitted data every day since. The missions of UNITE [Undergraduate Nano Ionospheric Temperature Explorer] are to measure plasma properties in the lower ionosphere using a Langmuir Plasma Probe, to measure its internal and skin temperatures to compare with a student-developed thermal model, and to track the orbital decay of the CubeSat, particularly near re-entry. The 3U UNITE CubeSat is passively magnetically and aerodynamically stabilized. This paper summarizes the design, build, integration, test and operations phases of the UNITE project since its inception in August 2016. The all-undergraduate team designed, fabricated, tested and integrated the command board, solar panels, and temperature sensor array. In addition, the team integrated a magnetometer and GPS. A commercially purchased Electric Power/Communication Subsystem provides Maximum Power Point Tracking and Simplex and Duplex communication through the Globalstar satellite network allowing nearly 24/7 contact with UNITE. The team wrote and tested the flight software which is divided into five primary modes. Some results from the first several months of flight are summarized and lessons learned are shared, with the intent of assisting future CubeSat teams.
UNITE CubeSat: From Inception to Early Orbital Operations
Utah State University, Logan, UT
On January 31, 2019 the University of Southern Indiana UNITE CubeSat was deployed from the International Space Station and has transmitted data every day since. The missions of UNITE [Undergraduate Nano Ionospheric Temperature Explorer] are to measure plasma properties in the lower ionosphere using a Langmuir Plasma Probe, to measure its internal and skin temperatures to compare with a student-developed thermal model, and to track the orbital decay of the CubeSat, particularly near re-entry. The 3U UNITE CubeSat is passively magnetically and aerodynamically stabilized. This paper summarizes the design, build, integration, test and operations phases of the UNITE project since its inception in August 2016. The all-undergraduate team designed, fabricated, tested and integrated the command board, solar panels, and temperature sensor array. In addition, the team integrated a magnetometer and GPS. A commercially purchased Electric Power/Communication Subsystem provides Maximum Power Point Tracking and Simplex and Duplex communication through the Globalstar satellite network allowing nearly 24/7 contact with UNITE. The team wrote and tested the flight software which is divided into five primary modes. Some results from the first several months of flight are summarized and lessons learned are shared, with the intent of assisting future CubeSat teams.
