Digital Commons Network^™

Qualification Of 3d-Printed Titanium Volume-Optimized Propulsion Tanks For Small Satellites, Robert Fowler, Ryan Thibaudeau, Weston Allen, Twinkle Pandhi, Sid Raje, Matt Karesh, Stefka Petkova, Ryan Askew, Fernando Ferreira, Jake Schwartzman

Small Satellite Conference

The current state of the art for small satellite chemical propellant tanks is limited in design customization, is expensive, and is volumetrically inefficient within the cuboid volumes of small satellite buses. Space Dynamics Laboratory and Velo3D Inc. partnered to develop propulsion tank technology that solves these challenges using metal additive manufacturing (AM). We designed, analyzed, built, heat-treated, post-machined, precision cleaned, and qualification tested a titanium 6A14V volume-optimized 3D-printed propulsion tank with an integral printed propellant management device (PMD). They are rated for a maximum expected operating pressure of 400 psi. These tanks are 3D-printed in the desired cuboid mission geometries …

Edge Node: A Multi-User Rendezvous And Proximity Operations On-Orbit Testbed, Darren Rowen, Joel Rivera, Susan Lui, Joseph Gangestad, Alex Gallenberger, Binh Dinh, Phaedrus Leeds, Noah Weiner, Rudd Johnson, Christopher Day, Alexander Christidis

Small Satellite Conference

Edge Node is a multi-small satellite free-flying, collaborative testbed for formation flight and rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) under development by The Aerospace Corporation that is planned for launch in 2026- 2027. Edge Node will develop and advance local space situational awareness sensors for CubeSat-scale platforms and facilitate the development and qualification of autonomous on-board RPO software for CubeSats. Edge Node is intended to serve as a multi-user on-orbit facility through which technologies and algorithms can be tested and validated in the authentic operational low Earth orbital environment. Edge Node leverages recent advances in miniature sensor and computing hardware for …

From Design To Orbit: Engineering Sub-Arcsecond Cubesat Pointing Performance On Pathfinder-3, Paaras S. Agrawal, Christian O. Fuller, Kyle R. Kung, Jeremiah J. Dimatteo

Small Satellite Conference

Pathfinder-3 (PTD-3) spacecraft is the third vehicle of the NASA Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator (PTD) series, which are a collection of 6U CubeSats launched in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to demonstrate innovative payload capabilities. The payloads are hosted on commercially developed satellites designed and manufactured by Terran Orbital Corporation (TOC) with a goal to support a wide array of technology demonstration missions through a flexible architecture that can be tailored for custom needs. PTD-3 hosts a high data rate laser communications payload that does not include its own pointing acquisition and control system, and, therefore, is dependent on accurate bus pointing …

Characterizing A Chip Scale Atomic Clock In Low Earth Orbit, Mikaela Dobbin, Austin Hunter, William Gravel, Conner Parker, Penina Axelrad

Small Satellite Conference

The University of Colorado Boulder has developed an experiment to characterize the behavior of a chip-scale atomic clock (CSAC) in space, conducted on the MAXWELL CubeSat mission. This experiment integrates a CSAC as an external oscillator to the onboard GPS receiver, enabling clock characterization through real-time estimates of clock bias, GPS pseudorange, and carrier phase measurements. These data will demonstrate the CSAC's short and long-term stability and its sensitivity to the space environment.

This paper evaluates the observation of CSAC performance using GPS within the constraints of the MAXWELL mission. The results, derived from tests with realistic orbit and spacecraft …

Characterisation Of Satcom Networks For Rapid Message Delivery: Early In-Orbit Results, Robert Mearns, Airlie Chapman, Michele Trenti

Small Satellite Conference

Traditional nanosatellite communication links rely on infrequent ground-station access windows. While this is well suited to both payload data and detailed scheduling information, it leads to both intermittent and short communication windows. The resulting long periods without contact are ill-suited for both opportunistic tasking of satellites and triggers generated by autonomous operations. Existing orbital infrastructure in the form of satellite communication (SATCOM) networks, such as Iridium and others provide a readily available and cost effective solution to this problem. While these networks continue to be utilized onboard nanosatellites, a full characterization of their utility and performance in-orbit is vital to …

Beavercube Ii: Using Ai-Optimized Processors On Earth-Observing Cubesats For Autonomous Image Analysis And Intelligent Data Handling, Adam Bahlous-Boldi, Celvi Lisy, Neelambar Mondal, Brianna Ferro, Shreeyam Kacker, Mary Dahl, Madeline Anderson, Kerri Cahoy

Small Satellite Conference

The mission goal of BeaverCube II is to demonstrate autonomous on-orbit image processing and classification using the Xilinx Versal System-On-Chip (SOC). The Versal has 400 dedicated AI engines on an FPGA-based platform, enabling compute-intensive machine learning capabilities. While the Versal can consume over 100 W of power, BeaverCube II will demonstrate its on-orbit function in a low-power, size-constrained system. The system will use machine learning algorithms such as K-means clustering to autonomously assess whether features or changes of interest are present across keyframes.

BeaverCube II has a 1U imaging payload consisting of three Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) cameras: two identical visible …

Laser Crosslink Experiment: A Mission Overview, Sean Stanko, Dan Frey, Jose Ruvalcaba, Sean Burk, Damian Klaren, Dmitriy Obukhov, Barry Tidmore, Jason Bousquet, David Wayne, Nathan Barnwell, Kevin Book, Stan Volchenok, David Sadowski, David Palmer

Small Satellite Conference

The Laser Crosslink Experiment (LaCE) is an ongoing optical communication campaign with ground, stratospheric, and orbital elements. The principal LaCE experiment is two 6U CubeSats, LaCE 1 and LaCE 2, which were launched to a shared sun-synchronous Low Earth Orbit (LEO) on March 4, 2024. LaCE was originally conceived in 2015 as an integration effort for a series of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) proposals. Its primary experiment is the Skylight laser terminal, an experimental optical communications device.

Due to the experimental nature of key subsystems, LaCE was expanded in 2020 from the initial small satellite mission to a hybrid …

Manufacturing In Microgravity And Sample Re-Entry Using A Commercial Rideshare Spacecraft Platform, Katie Gwozdecky, Karan Sarda

Small Satellite Conference

In 2021, Varda Space Industries contracted Rocket Lab USA to design, build, and operate four spacecraft to support an in-space manufacturing payloads inside of a commercial capsule and provide the capsule with a safe return to Earth. This mission was to be the first fully commercial controlled Earth re-entry and recovery of a space-based capsule. Four spacecraft, Winnebago-1 through -4, are to be built and launched on SpaceX Falcon-9 Transporter rideshare launches into sun-synchronous low Earth orbit. Each of these satellites feature Varda’s re-entry payload capsule which will demonstrate varied types of in-space capability from pharmaceutical crystal growth to use …

The Framework Makes The Mission - An Analytical Comparison Of Two Popular Nasa Open Source Flight Software Framework Offerings, Sterling L. Peet, Scott M. Gilliland, Jeffrey S. Young

Small Satellite Conference

Selecting a flight software (FSW) framework is a critical part of starting the software development for a mission. Currently, there are two primary NASA-supported frameworks that might be considered as possible solutions: F Prime (F') and core Flight System (cFS). Both of these frameworks share similarities in their focus but differ in their design and assumptions of how an end user might utilize and extend them.

The evaluation and comparison of the discussed frameworks is based on two immersion visits with core development teams. To demonstrate each framework and to compare their implementations, the same two-wheeled robotic explorer reference mission …

A Green Propulsion Dual Mode (Gpdm) In-Space Technology Demonstration On A 6u Cubesat, Nehemiah Joel Williams, Darren S. Wallace, Christopher G. Burnside, Austin Moore, Josh Leblanc, Beau C. Simpson, Harold S. Stephens

Small Satellite Conference

Over the past decade there has been an increase in the launch and operations of small spacecraft. Small spacecraft (defined as having a total vehicle mass of < 180 kg) provide an opportunity for low-cost, high impact technology demonstrations on a small scale. They also create opportunities for government, industry, and academic to engage, transfer knowledge, and extend partnerships with non-traditional partners. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is leading a collaborative effort to demonstrate a dual-mode (chemical and electrospray) propulsion system using a common propellant system as a payload on a 6U CubeSat. The novel feature in the propulsion system is the interfacing of propulsion technologies requiring dramatically different operating conditions and support hardware. GPDM will use a low toxicity or "green" propellant known as Advanced Spacecraft Energetic Non-Toxic (ASCENT) to demonstrate using a chemical thruster for translation burns and electrospray propulsion for both attitude control and translational burns on the spacecraft. Specific mission activities could include demonstration of collision avoidance during frequent altitude adjustment maneuvers to validate thruster performance and managing extended duration thruster burns of at least 24 hours with limited vehicle contact times. This paper will summarize the ground testing, spacecraft development, mission objectives, and mission planning activities to achieve some of GPDM's technical objectives.

Solar Sail Propulsion - Ready For Smallsat Mission Implementation, Les Johnson, Leslie Mcnutt, Anan Takroori

Small Satellite Conference

Solar sails have the potential to provide high ΔV for many types of missions. Solar sails are large, mirror-like structures made of a lightweight material that reflects sunlight to propel the spacecraft. The continuous solar photon pressure provides thrust with no need for the heavy, expendable propellants used by conventional chemical and electric propulsion systems. The 1653 m2 NASA Solar Cruiser solar sail propulsion system, made from 2.5 micron-thick thin film, recently advanced to NASA's Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 through extensive testing (January 2024). The sailcraft platform has pointing control and attitude stability comparable to traditional platforms, supporting both …

Cold-Infusion Of Catalytic Materials Into 3-D Printed Fuels For In-Space Hybrid Propulsion Performance Enhancement, Ryan Thibaudeau, Stephen A. Whitmore

Small Satellite Conference

A recent study by the ESA Space Research and Technology Center has identified that "reducing toxicity of propellants" offers the highest potential for reducing commercial space operating costs. Developing a "green" alternative for hydrazine, the most commonly used space propellant, was highly recommended. Hybrid propulsion offers an emerging, low-cost solution, especially for SmallSat propulsion.

Historically, a primary drawback of hybrid systems was a lack of reliable multiple-use ignition methods. Recently, restartability issues were overcome by leveraging unique dielectric breakdown properties of 3-D printed acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). Additive printing significantly changes thermoelectric properties, and when ABS is subjected to an …

Automation As A Mindset: An Approach To Streamlining Spacecraft Development And Operations, Annalisa Vilaysing, Terrance Yee, Elizabeth Nelson

Small Satellite Conference

With limited opportunities and funding for deep space missions, there is increased pressure to build better, faster, and cheaper space-borne payloads. Smaller teams and limited tools provide a unique challenge for such development. This paper reviews the approach the Micro-Mission Systems (MMS) group at Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) took in the development of the Mars Synchronous Orbiter (MSO) to streamline and automate various tasks so team members could focus their efforts on solving more difficult problems and minimize user induced errors.

The team utilized free tools to automate labor intensive and manual processes, run and monitor tests with little …

What Is Kulr One Space?, Matthew Reggio, Rahul Danda, Maddy Lipschitz, Peter Hughes

Small Satellite Conference

Our battery line architecture prioritizes safety and performance, making it ideal for CubeSat and SmallSat applications. It features a fibercore flame arrestor to prevent flame escape and dissipate heat, sidewall rupture protection to contain thermal events, and advanced clad material tabs for higher current capacities and better performance. Ablative shielding contains blasts from compromised cells, and our thermal management strategy ensures optimal performance in extreme conditions. These features set a new standard in reliability and efficiency for aerospace applications.

Miniaturized Scintillation Based Detector For Characterizing Energetic Electron Precipitation, Anant Telikicherla

Small Satellite Conference

In-situ measurements of energetic particle precipitation in the near-Earth space environment are essential for understanding the governing physical processes responsible for this precipitation, as well as to elucidate the possible impacts of space radiation on the Earth’s atmosphere. In this study, we present the design of a novel miniaturized detector to measure energetic electron precipitation. The detector is one of the instruments to be flown on-board the Canadian RADiation Impacts on Climate and Atmospheric Loss Satellite (RADICALS) mission, which is a low-Earth orbiting satellite planned to launch in 2026/2027. The detector is optimized to measure high energy electron microburst precipitation, …

Launch & Early Operations Phase (Leop) Iridium Eyestar-S4 24-7 Link With Mosaic-X5 Gps And Launch Results, Jeff F. Dailey, Matthew B. Orvis, John Pugsley, Matthew C. Voss, Hank D. Voss

Small Satellite Conference

Satellite Mission Success is best achieved during the Launch Early Operations Phase (LEOP) when a satellite first becomes alive as radio data (TT&C) appears on the ground station within seconds. Using the Iridium global network, no matter where a tumbling satellite is in orbit, TT&C data is available anywhere-anytime. Diagnostic data, GPS, spin rates, live ADCS, temperatures, voltages, electrical power systems, primary processor, deployments, and payload monitors like plasma density or integral particle fluxes can all be tracked during the turn-on process with the option of disabling or adjusting command parameters to the unexpected. Several EyeStar-S4 flight NSL/Iridium transceivers can …

Techedsat-11: Prototyping Autonomous Communications In Orbit, Rachel Dudukovich, Adam Gannon, Janette Briones, Timothy Recker, Patrick Zhong, Kyle Deleon, Lucas Shalkhauser, Ethan Schweinsberg, Evan Danish, Alejandro Salas, Marcus Murbach

Small Satellite Conference

Cognitive Engine 1 (CE-1) Is a state-of-the-art automated system designed to manage routine operations and respond to adverse events without requiring human operator input. CE-1 will optimize scheduling capabilities, detect and react to link failures, and ensure data delivery deadlines are met efficiently. Seamless roaming between government and commercial providers will allow for a robust and cost-effective network. TechEdSat-11 will demonstrate two key components of CE-1: User Initiated Services (UIS) and Delay Tolerant Networking (DTN). The first phase of the experiment will use UIS to automate on-demand scheduling of a commercial S-band ground station. Later phases of the experiment will …

Thermal Performance Of Starling Spacecrafts And Comparison To Thermal Model Results, Ali Kashani, Scott Miller, Terry Stevenson, Jeffrey Blair, Watson Attai, Jennifer Young, David Brasser, Reece Whitt

Small Satellite Conference

The Starling mission consists of four 6U CubeSats launched in July 2023 to test several technologies that could enable future swarm missions. The Starling experiment payload is comprised of a Xiphos Q7S processor, a C&DH/power board called the Bus Interface Card (BIC), and CesiumAstro's CommPack radio that enables crosslink communication amongst the spacecrafts in the swarm. The CommPack radio is itself comprised of an S-band Software Defined Radio (SDR) and two Transmit Receive Modules (TRMs) with integrated patch antennas.

Zero By Interstellar Technologies Inc.: Lowering The Cost Of Access To Space From Japan, Lui Suzuki, Satoshi Nakayama, Kazumi Sakai

Small Satellite Conference

The demand for small satellite launch opportunities continues to increase year by year, especially the demand for low-cost and flexible access. With various missions, requirements, and constraints, many small satellites require dedicated launches to reach the desired orbit at the desired schedule. Although options such as rideshares and lower-cost dedicated launches are more common compared to years before, the demand for small satellite launch services remains high. This trend is also apparent in Japan and other Asian countries as currently, there are only few opportunities to launch from the local region. To address this shortage, Interstellar Technologies Inc. based in …

Concept And Feasibility Of Enabling Broadband Comunication To A Remote Sensing Satellite, Fong-Yu Chen, Chieh-Fu Chang

Small Satellite Conference

Traditional remote sensing satellites uses X-band transmitter (XTX) to dump large volume of image data in a high data rate, i. e., greater than 100Mbps. Since the need and trend of low-earth-orbit (LEO) communications arise, we wonder if we can improve the usefulness of a remote sensing satellite by upgrading the inherent XTX as a X-band transceiver (XTRX), so that a remote sensing satellite can incorporate additional broadband communication functionality. This work investigates the feasibility in three perspectives with the illustration of FORMOSAT-8, an optical remote sensing satellite.

First, from the perspective of antenna and RF chain, the downlink band …

Innovating In The Infra-Red, Taking The Temperature Of The Earth Observation Market, Mike Goddard, Steven Knox, Harbinder Rana, James Bell, John Gilby, Diego Angarita-Jaimes, Trevor Wood, Calem Whiting, Nigel Philips, Matthew Price, Alan Matthews, Grant Childs, Tony Pattison, Mark Cantrill, Rupert Taylor, Jonathan Karimian, Andrew Haslehurst, Alex Da Silva Curiel, Martin Sweeting

Small Satellite Conference

The DarkCarb instrument has been specifically designed to provide high-resolution thermal video imagery from a small satellite in support of a range of emerging commercial, government and scientific applications. So far, such capability has only been available on large expensive satellites in a very limited fashion. Sensor and cooling technology has evolved in recent years so that such an instrument can now be designed and operated to provide useful performance over a typical satellite design-lifetime, and at a cost making new applications financially viable. The instrument provides 3.5 m Ground Sampling Distance (GSD) over a 4.5 x 3.6 km scene …

Planet's Agile Software Development For Spacecraft, Kenneth Donahue, Kiruthika Devaraj, James Mason, Meric Ozturk

Small Satellite Conference

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL), is a vertically integrated space and data company, and a leading provider of daily Earth data and insights; we design, build, and operate the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. We have built and launched over 500 satellites by pioneering the agile aerospace philosophy that encourages rapid prototyping and iteration on the hardware, and building a minimum viable flight software to launch the satellites into space. This allows us to use space as a testbed and extension of the development environment as quickly as possible. Further software development occurs after the satellites are in space, …

Mmx, The Next Generation Of In-Situ Exploration Mission, Claire Durand, Franck Rousseau, Clément Dudal, Julien Baroukh, Kent Yoshikawa

Small Satellite Conference

The JAXA MMX (Martian Moons eXploration) mission has the objectives to study Phobos, the largest moon of Mars, and to bring back to Earth a sample from its surface, to answer one main question: what is the origin of the Martian moons? This mission will be launched in 2026 and will last five years. MMX spacecraft, the orbiter, developed by JAXA will travel from Earth to Mars and then study Phobos and Deimos moons with a foreseen sample collection of Phobos soil. MMX will carry and drop a small rover, developed by CNES and DLR, on Phobos surface. This rover, …

Sli - Landsat Next “Superspectral Triplets” Mission, Greg Snyder

Small Satellite Conference

Mission Concept: Collection of “superspectral” land observations featuring richer spectral information and higher spatial resolution than Landsat 8 and 9 with improved temporal frequency to meet land imaging user needs in the 2030s

A Compact High-Resolution Ion & Neutral Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometer For Advanced Space Applications, Lucas Anderson, Chad Fish, Gregory Miller, Ryan Blase

Small Satellite Conference

We present the design, development, and testing of four novel, compact, high-precision Time-Of-Flight (TOF) Mass Spectrometers (MS) for integration with the next generation of space flight platforms. These MS instruments are capable of sampling both ions and neutral elements and are designed to integrate with a variety of space flight vehicles, including sounding rockets and small satellites (ESPA & 12U CubeSats or larger). One of the four flight instruments has been prototyped as a sounding rocket payload with a SWAP of approximately ~8 kg, and ~15 W using a 12-bit 3.2Gs/s analog-to-digital converter data acquisition system (With a Time to …

The Climate-N Constellation Of Small Satellites For The Detailed Measurement Of Aerosol Pollution, Cloud Properties, And Greenhouse Gases, J. Vanderlei Martins, Richard Kleidman, Lorraine A. Remer, Oleg Dubovik, David Fuertes, Marcos Herreras Giralda

Small Satellite Conference

Following the advent of small satellites and the development of science quality miniature payloads, we are implementing a private constellation (the climate-n missions where n is the number of the satellite) of small satellites for the measurement of particulate aerosols and greenhouse gases from space. The two main payloads for this mission are a multi-angle imaging polarimeter designed for the detailed measurement of aerosol particle properties and cloud microphysics, and a shortwave infrared spectrometer optimized for the measurement of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and Methane (CH₄).

The first demonstrator for the polarimeter payload (GAPMAP-0) was launched in …

Framework For Radiation-Hardened Space Battery Management, Bhavika Kagathi

Small Satellite Conference

Battery management systems (BMS) are crucial for satellites to maintain a reliable energy source. Today, lithium-ion batteries act as the solution to reduce the cost and weight of satellites, yet still come with safety concerns.

The combination of the high energy density of Li-ion and flammable material associated with batteries can be hazardous due to thermal runaway, overcharging, improper balancing, and the chance of experiencing a short. Currently, there are no radiation-hardened balancer/monitor ICs with the ability to sense battery state of health and state of charge.

This poster highlights a discrete, autonomous, and reliable BMS approach that provides high …

Development Of A Methodology For Optimizing Satellite Durability By Coupling Advanced Orbit Propagation With High Fidelity 3d Thermal-Electrical Simulation, Corey D. Packard, Logan R. Canull, Zachary J. Edel, Timofey Golubev, Michael L. Larsen, Nate Mccoun

Small Satellite Conference

In the rapidly evolving landscape of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite technology, this study presents a pioneering approach for analyzing satellite durability through advanced orbit propagation and high fidelity 3D thermal-electric simulation. Small satellites, packed with high power components and rapidly transitioning between sunlit and eclipsed orbit segments, often feature limited thermal control systems that make thermal management a challenging (but critical) task. Additionally, the durability of battery cells and photovoltaic (PV) panels over the mission lifetime of small satellites is an important concern. Cycling and calendar fade take their toll on battery lifetime, and PV degradation reduces operational efficiency …

The Stellar Occultation Hypertemporal Imaging Payload: A Year Aboard The International Space Station, Lance Simms, Dana Mcguffin, Cesar Laguna, Minh Pham, David Patrick, Brian Baumann, Jordan Karburn, Collin Averill, Steve Hunter, Princess Corral, Jeff Klingman, Darrell Carter, Jon Gordon, Ik Jang, George Dankiewicz, Pete Supsinskas, Ron Kane, Matt Horsley, Philip Cameron-Smith, John Ganino, Wim De Vries, Ryan Fellini, Frank Ravizza, Ben Bahney

Small Satellite Conference

From its vantage point on the aft side of the International Space Station (ISS), for just over a year the Stellar Occultation Hypertemporal Imaging Payload (SOHIP) monitored the light from bright stars traveling through Earth's atmosphere. Using two optical telescopes, SOHIP's mission was to measure the scintillation and refractive bending of this starlight to detect and characterize upper atmospheric perturbations down to length scales of 10 meters. SOHIP measurements of atmospheric properties such as temperature, pressure, air-density, and refractivity profiles at altitudes up to 50 kilometers can provide estimates of atmospheric gravity waves and turbulence in the stratosphere. Designed and …

A ‘Nuclear Bomb’ Or Just ‘A Joke’? Groundwater Models May Help Communicate Nuanced Risks To The Great Salt Lake, Matthew D. Laplante, Piyush Dahal, Shih-Yu Simon Wang, Kirsti Hakala, Avik Mukherjee

Plants, Soils, and Climate Faculty Publications

The Great Salt Lake entered the zeitgeist of environmental concern in 2022 when a coalition of scientists and activists warned in a highly publicized report that the lake might be just five years away from complete desiccation, a possibility one state official warned was tantamount to an “environmental nuclear bomb”. Shortly thereafter, an unpredicted and unprecedented pluvial winter resulted in an increase in inflow, temporarily halting the lake’s decline and prompting Utah’s governor to mock the dire prediction as “a joke”, an outcome that speaks to the tension between agenda-setting and trust-building that researchers face when sharing worst-case warnings, particularly …