A sampling of recent articles, press releases, etc. related to student and amateur CubeSat / SmallSat projects and programs (find previous smallsat roundups here):
** NASA grant for Univ. of Hawaii team developing CubeSat kits for undergraduate projects: UH awarded $500K to develop small-satellite educational kits | University of Hawaiʻi System News
In a bold new initiative to inspire the next generation, NASA has awarded $2.4 million to six universities, including the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, as part of its Artemis Student Challenges. UH Mānoa received $500,000 to create to create an affordable 1U CubeSat kit, which will help develop a robust aerospace program starting at the undergraduate level, including hardware, software and an online lab course.
UH Mānoa will generate hands-on learning opportunities related to orbital and suborbital CubeSats, miniaturized satellites for space research, containing all of the subsystems of fully functioning passive satellites. Each CubeSat will include onboard computing, communication components, dynamic sensors, an infrared camera and an electrical power system. Undergraduate students will help develop all aspects of the project under the guidance of Hawaiʻi Space Flight Laboratory (HSFL) engineers, and will have paid internship positions.
“We are proving that smallsats are absolutely within the realm of an undergraduate education and will develop this course into a national online course in the public domain through a popular online learning platform,” said Frances Zhu, Hawaiʻi Institute of Geophysics and Planetology assistant researcher.
The hands-on learning opportunities will be supplemented with online learning resources. The grant will also be used to assist CubeSat projects from states that are not yet part of NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative. This team will include a broad network of students from Hawaiʻi and Washington to perform the initial evaluation of the learning products.
Here was the grant announcement: NASA Funds Artemis Student Challenges to Inspire Space Exploration | NASA
University of Hawaii, Honolulu – $500,000: The university will generate hands-on learning opportunities related to orbital and suborbital CubeSats containing all of the subsystems of a fully functioning passive satellite. Each CubeSat will include onboard computing, communication components, dynamic sensors, an infrared camera and an electrical power system. The hands-on learning opportunities will be supplemented with online learning resources. The grant will also be used to assist CubeSat projects from states that are not yet part of NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative. This team will include undergraduate students from the University of Hawaii in Honolulu. A broad network of students from Hawaii and Washington will be included in performing the initial evaluation of the learning products.
UH Manoa awarded $500k for Artemis Project – Hawaii Space Flight Laboratory
New faculty member, Dr. Frances Zhu, recently applied for and won one of six NASA Artemis Student Challenge Awards. She is the PI on this exciting new project to create a foundation enabler 1U CubeSat for $5000 or less per unit with an online lab course. This will help undergraduate programs interested in starting an aerospace track to do so. The goal of the kit is not solely for space flight, it can be used as a tabletop sensor suite, avionics for a sounding rocket, the payload balloon or suborbital mission, a sensor pack for a rover, and more. The team responsible for designing, fabricating, and testing the kit will include HSFL Facu lty, Staff, and undergraduate students. The project kickoff was held on May 18.
** AMSAT news on student and amateur CubeSat/smallsat projects:
ANS-138 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin
- AMSAT Receives PPP Funds During COVID-19 Pandemic
- [HuskySat-1 (HO-107) Transponder is Open – ARRL]
- HuskySat-1 Designated OSCAR 107 (HO-107)
- AMSAT Executive VP Congratulates HuskySat-1 Team
- New Satellite Frequency Chart Is Free to Members
- ARISS Continues Test of MultiPoint Telebridge Contact via Amateur Radio
- 10th Annual GNU Radio Conference Goes Virtual
- AMSAT-EA Receives IARU Coordination for Two Satellites
- AO-7 Delivers Stunning Contact
- UN Launches Second Space4Youth Competition
- Upcoming Satellite Operations
- ARISS News
- Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
- Satellite Shorts from All Over
ANS-145 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
- AMSAT Announces 2020 Field Day Rules
- AMSAT Awards Update
- AO-27 Returns from the Dead
- Updated GOLF Project Information Available
- Changing HuskySat-1 Keps Name in FoxTelem
- Hack-a-Sat Team Boasts Exceptional Participation
- Upcoming Satellite Operations
- ARISS News
- Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
- Satellite Shorts From All Over
See also: Two New Chinese Ham Satellites Expected to Launch in September – ARRL.org
General CubeSat/SmallSat info:
- Resources:
- Projects:
** Launching Both CubeSats and Events With SEDS Rice President Ryan Udell – Via Satellite
SEDS Rice Chapter President Ryan Udell gives us an example of next-gen space leadership. An engineering major eager to connect his fellow students with the greater space industry, Ryan has taken it upon himself to revamp the SEDS chapter at his university, transforming the club from a single member to over 30!
From there, he founded and hosted the inaugural Owls in Space Symposium event, which featured attendees such as NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and NASA astronaut Dr. Peggy Whitson. Additionally, he led Rice University’s entry into the NASA CubeSat launch initiative project, which was 1 of 18 winners to be launched into space.
In this episode, On Orbit talks to Ryan about the similarities and differences in leading (and launching) two very different projects, and what it takes to be a next-gen space leader.
** Craig Clark – Pioneering the UK Smallsat Industry – Cold Star Project S02E37
Founder & CSO of AAC Clyde Space Craig Clark is on the Cold Star Project, and our topic is how Clyde has strongly contributed to the pioneering of the UK small satellite industry. With host Jason Kanigan, Craig shares:
– what the most important thing he learned from 11 years as a team leader at Surrey Satellite Tech was
– a snapshot of the UK space industry…where he believes its principle expertise or competitive advantage is, and where it is headed
– what he learned on the UK’s Space Leadership Council, and what impact he believes the Council has
– how Clyde minimizes the smallsat field’s awful 40+% partial plus full mission failure rate…what he has learned about refining quality assurance to produce cubesats in bulk without compromising reliability
– what the most challenging thing at the moment is, given that getting people together to manufacture something is not easy to achieve
– the mission he is most proud of so far, and why.
AAC Clyde Space website: https://www.aac-clyde.space/
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