Aerospace Engineering Commons^™

Lego®-Based Cubesats For Space Outreach, Stefan Brandle, Joshua Brown, Evan Smith, Drew Nye, Sydney Reddy, Twidy Kwae, Kaiya Grzesiak, Matthew Roderer, John Hetz

Small Satellite Conference

Taylor University Computer Science and Engineering is building a satellite having a LEGO®-robotics-based payload.

Mission Goals

• Have university students build a novel ELEO satellite
• Demonstrate viability of LEGO robotics electronics in space for short-term low-altitude missions
• Enhance space awareness by capturing the public's imagination through integral use of LEGO in an actual satellite
• Identify partners willing to provide advice and promote this project
• Create additional pathways for K-12 and university student participation in building satellites and satellite-related projects
• Support other space-education organizations through a high-visibility satellite project
• Continue space outreach efforts in the spirit of the ThinSat project
• ThinSat was …

Multiclass Satellite Payload For Sar, Leonardo Carrer, Davide Giudici, Fabio Gerace, Paolo Falcone, Davide D'Aria, Giuseppe Leccese, Vincenzo Pulcino

Small Satellite Conference

SAR enables reliable all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation. Conventional SAR missions rely on large satellites, high power and costly development cycles.

NanoSat and SmallSat platforms offer faster deployment and lower mission costs, but face strict mass, volume, power and antenna constraints.

A modular multiclass payload allows the same SAR electronic core to be adapted to different satellite platforms.

Distributed SIMO/MIMO operation shares Radar resources across multiple spacecraft, improving scalability, resilience and revisit time. The proposed architecture enables high-performance X-band SAR missions using compact and cost-effective satellite systems.

Rad-Hard Circuits For Complete System-On-Chip Integration Of Smallsat Electronics On Standard Non-Rad-Hard Cmos Including Finfets, Ignatius Bezzam, Dhandeep Challagundla, Riadul Islam

Small Satellite Conference

1. SmallSat Compute Is Thermally Constrained

• SmallSats are packing more autonomy, sensing, and payload processing into tighter volumes.
• Power budget, heat removal, and radiation reliability constrain sustained on-orbit computation.
• Off-chip shielding increases mass and volume
• Redundancy and guard-banding increase switching energy. 
• This work targets lower heat generation and higher reliability inside the silicon.

Multipoint Sensor Constellations Demonstrated On Spear-1 Using Radstar, Black Box, And Fastbus+, Jeff Dailey, Matt Orvis, John Pugsley, Matt Voss, Hank Voss, Nathan Turner, Dillon Embry, Gretchen Barnes, Mike Schuckel, Nathan Daniels

Small Satellite Conference

NearSpace Launch (NSL) has developed and flown both multipoint sensor constellations and hosted-payload smallsat constellations since 2014, supporting missions for educational, commercial, and government partners. These missions enable distributed, multipoint sensing by combining compact sensor suites with persistent, low-latency satellite links and a common, time-ordered data architecture suitable for constellation operations. Recent flight heritage includes 24/7 space-to-Internet communications and rapid Launch and Early Operations Phase (LEOP) telemetry acquisition to support early identification, commissioning, and anomaly response. Most recently, the Space Power and Energy Advanced Reconnaissance (SPEAR-1) constellation demonstrated this multipoint architecture while maturing advanced power-generation and energy-storage technologies relevant to …

Systems Progress Overview Of Rosisat: The Radiation Orbital Shielding Investigation Satellite, Chase Patterson, Jacob Blanton, Jayden Mcdonald, Kylie Nager, Colson Walker, Francisco Crespo Cutillas

Small Satellite Conference

Exposure to space weather in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) space weather environment poses significant challenges to both the integrity and longevity of orbital hardware, as well as the health of astronauts, driving the necessity for improved means of radiation shielding for future manned and unmanned missions. With a 1U CubeSat formfactor, ROSISat is a planned LEO mission that aims to characterize the radiation shielding capabilities of seven candidate materials. By comparing the shielding performance of each composite and constituent material, ROSISat will place a specific focus on correlating how molecular structure influences radiation shielding. Further, current simulations lack the …

Reacquiring Satellites After Unknown Maneuvers In Sensor Blind Spots: A Physics-Informed Behavioral Framework For Closed-Loop Custody Recovery, Naushad Rahman, Niha Agarwalla, Hardik Patel

Small Satellite Conference

Operational problem

After a maneuver during a sensor blind spot, a pre­-gap catalog state may no longer be operationally sufficient. A null look at GS2 must become evidence for where the object could be­ – and where to task next – before access expires.

The Quantum Cubesat: A Perspective For Quantum Technology In Orbit, Natalie Pearson, Andrew Kelly, Curtis Talbot, Colin Aitken, Kevin Quillen, Sandy Provan

Small Satellite Conference

Motivation

The ability to measure, control and exploit quantum effects has shown significant potential to outperform classical devices across a variety of applications in computing, sensing and communication. However, quantum devices today typically depend equipment that is large, heavy, expensive and delicate. Bringing quantum capability to space requires a relentless focus on miniaturisation, ruggedisation and applicability. Focusing engineering efforts on the most promising technologies to realise their benefits in orbit is a crucial step in this process.

Validation Of Steering Law For A 4-Variable-Speed Single-Gimbal Control Moment Gyroscope Pyramid Cluster Via Spherical Air-Bearing Testbed, Kai Kuo Liao, Chih Ta Wu, Jen Hao Cheng, Po Hsun Yen, Shang Jung Lee

Small Satellite Conference

• VSCMG: wheel speed is commanded with gimbal rate — the extra DOF lets the cluster slide past singularities.
• HIL: a Helmholtz cage replays the on-orbit field and a solar simulator sets the Sun line.
• This work: HIL validation of a weighted-pseudoinverse steering law, 4-unit pyramid.

University Ground-Station-As-A-Service: Promoting Space It Education And University Collaboration, Daniel Freburg, Will Lewis, Charles Edamala, Phoenix Alpine

Small Satellite Conference

Poster presented at the 2026 Small Satellite Conference

Vpx/Sosa Systems: Enabling Multi-Vendor Interoperability, Novo Space

Small Satellite Conference

Poster presented at the 2026 Small Satellite Conference

Zerodur®: Tailoring Opportunities For Your Thermal Environment And Second-Order Optimum Factors, Jesse Bonfeld, Dustin Ruth, Florian Gollier, Janina Krieg, Thomas Westerhoff, Tony Hull, Jacqueline Caraballo

Small Satellite Conference

Poster Presented at the 2026 Small Satellite Conference

Reinventing The Reaction Wheel, I. Penchev, N. Andrada

Small Satellite Conference

Rapid growth of microsatellite missions and constellations in the 10–600 kg class is increasing the demand for scalable, high-performance attitude control solutions. Advanced payloads for Earth Observation, Synthetic Aperture Radar, complex science missions, and geolocation systems require:

• Low microvibration performance
• Precise pointing stability
• High angular momentum capacity
• Reliable across mission lifetimes

Space Inventor is qualifying a new generation of 1 Nms-class reaction wheels optimized for microsatellite platforms. The innovative mechanical design, combined with manufacturing-aware system design, unlocks expanded performance and mission opportunities for microsatellites and constellations.

Satellite Autonomous Launch Assembly (Satlass): Cold Gas Propulsion System Testing, Anthony Todisco Jr., Jaden Caradine, Justin Della, Essence Howard, Colin Mccaughey, Andrew Hawks, Alexander Kushto, Javier Narvaez, Gabriella Colon O'Hara, Franyerson Lopez Ochoa, Elizabeth Ptak, Diana Tormo, Francisco Crespo Cutillas, Sean Crouse, Lary Finberg

Small Satellite Conference

Project SATLASS plans to become one of the first cold gas propelled CubeSat Deployers used. Using Nitrogen gas, SATLASS will be able to place multiple CubeSats into customizable orbits autonomously. A modular housing unit will allow for 3-1U CubeSats to 1-3U CubeSat to ride along with SATLASS through Low Earth Orbit.

Development Of Wavelength-Division-Multiplexed All-Optical Relays For Low-Earth Orbit Free-Space Optical Communication Networks, Travis Jones, Justin Cook, Chris Krush, Doruk Engin, Keith G. Petrillo

Small Satellite Conference

In this work, we designed, built, and tested an all-optical relay amplifier to enable a space-based all-optical backbone for laser communications networks. The design sought to optimize links for LEO-based networks incorporating appropriate span lengths and optical terminal specifications. We incorporate an add-drop multiplexer for rerouting signals and designed the system to be flexible over span lengths with a nominal range of 1,800 km. We performed several tests of the nominally 60 dB gain amplifier to assess link dynamics unique to free space optical communications (FSOC) including the impact of pointing jitter, nonlinearities, gain flattening, and wide-band filters on an …

Intel® Government Technologies Space Products: Leading Edge Compute For Space, Robert Ciccariello, Ricardo Ascazubi, Kyle Dobkins, Nitesh Melwani, Ed Mily, Mike Nassan, Sean O’Neill, Ruchika Singh, Dan Weinstein

Small Satellite Conference

Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components are unlikely to meet the environmental survivability and assurance requirements to accomplish mission objectives in the harsh space environment. On the opposite end of the spectrum, developing custom space components on leading-edge technologies will often require multiple contractors and lengthy R&D efforts that significantly increase development costs and timelines. Intel Government Technologies (IGT) is introducing a space product roadmap, focused on space grade systems-in-package (SiPs) designed to address the transition from bespoke legacy architectures to low-SWaP, high-performance processing platforms for on-orbit systems. IGT Space Products are derived from Intel’s latest commercial technology and are uniquely configured, …

Demonstration Of Bidirectional Tracking And Data Transfer With The Cubeisl Optical Communication Terminal, Jan Hildebrand, Hannes Zeihsel, René Rüddenklau, Jorge Rosano Nonay, Lukas Rodeck, Olman Quiros Jimenez

Small Satellite Conference

This paper presents the experimental results of a free-space optical link validating the capabilities of two integrated CubeISL terminals. The campaign serves as a verification of the tracking, pointing and acquisition of the terminals before launch of the CubeISL mission. The link was conducted over a distance of 6600 m between the rooftop of the DLR Institute of Communication and Navigation in Oberpfaffenhofen and a 80 m high radio tower in Schöngeising. To ensure robust link establishment, the system employed a Pointing, Acquisition, and Tracking scheme utilizing both a 10 kHz modulated beacon for initial acquisition and a Continuous Wave …

Design And Qualification Of A Compact, Deployable Dual-Monopole Antenna System For Remote Sensing Microsatellites, Alexander J. Murphy, Bryan Johnston-Lemke, Robert E. Zee

Small Satellite Conference

Spacecraft conducting signals intelligence (SIGINT) missions require highly capable radio-frequency (RF) payloads. While the larger 80 kg-class platforms offer increased payload capacities, strict internal volume limitations persist. These constraints sometimes require stowing instruments, such as the dual-monopole Very High Frequency (VHF) antenna presented in this work, directly beneath the solar wings. This requirement has imposed a strict height constraint on the VHF antenna, mandating a highly compact and reliable deployment mechanism that avoids snagging or jamming during deployment. 

This paper presents the mechanism design and qualification test plan of a novel, deployable dual-monopole VHF antenna system designed to increase satellite …

Recovery Of Grus-1e From Magnetic Torquer Loss Using Data-Driven Open-Loop Attitude Steering, Nader Ganaba, Takanori Iwata, Minoru Kurata

Small Satellite Conference

In typical low Earth orbit (LEO) operations, the inability to remove excess angular momentum often leads to the decommissioning of a satellite. This paper presents the on-orbit recovery of GRUS-1E, a hundred kg class Earth observation satellite in Axelspace Corporation’s GRUS-1 constellation. The recovery followed the permanent loss of magnetic torquer commanding capability, which in turn disabled the satellite’s nominal reaction wheel momentum unloading. In addition, the satellite experienced persistent disturbance torques that significantly exceeded the combined contributions predicted by standard models, including gravity gradient, solar radiation pressure, aerodynamic drag, and the estimated residual magnetic dipole moment. The magnitude of …

The Genesis Of The Annual Usu Conference On Small Satellites, Rex Ridenoure, Alex Da Silva Curiel, Martin Sweeting

Small Satellite Conference

On this milestone of marking the 40^th SmallSat conference, this paper provides a capsule summary of how it all started in 1987, and why. 

By January 1986, Utah State University was actively involved with NASA’s Space Shuttle program, which from April 1981 through mid-January 1986 had notched 24 successful missions in a row, including nine in 1985. Missions were starting to appear routine, and the manifest was full for many dozens of future missions. 

The Shuttle’s Get Away Special (GAS) secondary payload program had become quite popular within academic, government and commercial sectors, and through 1985 six dozen separate …

Design And Development Of A Miniaturized Helmholtz Cage For Cubesat Adcs Testing, Karla Sever, Marko Bosiljevac

Small Satellite Conference

• Magnetic field generation is essential for laboratory testing of a CubeSat attitude determination and control system (ADCS). It supports repeatable evaluation of control algorithms and characterization of onboard magnetometers. Commercial systems are costly, so university labs typically build their own, tailored to their specific needs.
• Building on a review of over twenty university-developed Helmholtz cage designs, several of which were particularly influential to our own design [1-3], this poster presents the design, simulation and early experimental results of our Helmholtz cage, developed as part of the broader ADCS test setup we have been building.

Development Of A Digital Electronic Framework To Manage High Power Systems In Small Satellite Missions, Mariel Serra, Rami Kandela, Bryan Johnston-Lemke, Robert E. Zee

Small Satellite Conference

• As small spacecraft payloads increase in complexity, they introduce the need for higher capacity and reliable power systems.
• The use of radiation tested automotive-grade components offer low-costs, however these parts are less suited to increased power demands, exhibiting signs of on-orbit latch-up.
• A re-design of a Modular Power System’s digital framework is proposed to support more spacecraft loads with minimal computational stress on the electronic processing units.

Distributed Avionics As A Foundational Architecture For Cubesat Constellations And Swarms, Aaron S. Swagei, Ali Guarneros-Luna

Small Satellite Conference

Motivation

CubeSat constellations and swarms require spacecraft that can tolerate subsystem faults without relying exclusively on a single centralized flight computer. Distributing sensing, control, and fault-management authority can improve containment and enable graceful degradation.

Objective

Develop and experimentally evaluate a distributed CubeSat avionics architecture in which subsystem nodes retain local fault-management authority while an F´-based OBC provides mission-level coordination.

The FlatSat is used as a representative spacecraft-level building block for future constellation and swarm architectures.

History Of Aggiesat6: An Undergraduate Mission From Concept To Operations, Garrett M. Stevenson, John F. Connolly

Small Satellite Conference

AggieSat Laboratory (AGSL) is a student-run space vehicle development organization that trains students in systems engineering through hands-on experience in the design, building, testing, and operation of space and space-related systems.

AGSL currently supports 107 members, all but three (3) of which are undergraduates, across eight (8) projects, including an underclassmen shadowing program.

AGSL supports the initiative and learning capabilities of undergraduate members through peer mentorship and the institutionalization of knowledge across its projects to achieve success through a variety of projects.

Integrated Optical/Body-Dynamics Simulations For Pointing, Acquisition And Tracking For The Pulse-A Mission, Juan Ignacio Prieto Asbun, Elizabeth Rosario, Jiayang Xu, Catherine Todd, Robert Pitu, Tian Zhong

Small Satellite Conference

PULSE-A is the University of Chicago’s student-led 3U CubeSat mission to demonstrate a space-to-ground optical downlink at a data rate of 1 to 10 Mbps using circular polarization shift keying (CPolSK).

To avoid costly and ineffective hardware-in-the-loop simulations, we instead present software-in-the-loop simulations designed to qualify our optical and PAT systems. This allows for simulations of the coupled optical systems that include closed-loop corrections and body pointing errors.

Operationalizing On-Orbit Repair: A Conops For Gator Arms Small Satellite Servicing, Anais Mera-Sarnelli, Aimee Dew, Daniel Radu, Chrispher Petersen, Michael Generale

Small Satellite Conference

Mission Definition

• GATOR Arms (Galactic Autonomous Twin Operational Robotic Arms) was designed to provide in-space servicing to small satellites in LEO.
• Small satellites currently have limited servicing options, thus localized component failures can prematurely end otherwise viable missions.
• This poster develops the CONOPS for an operational servicing mission involving on-orbit inspection, repair, refurbishment, reconfiguration, reboost, or repurposing of client satellites for extended missions.
• The representative servicing task is the recovery and reconfiguration of an external deployable such as a solar panel, antenna, or radiator flap.
• GATOR Arms targets a 2-4 year servicing life, end-of-life disposal within 5 years of mission …

Sailing To The Stars Iss Experiment: Results And Conclusions From Light Sail Deployments In Microgravity, Verena Padres, Parishee Bajaj, Venkata Chalamalasetty, Claire Kim, Joshua Umansky-Castro, Dionna Parina, Gabriella Elcsics-Gonzalez, Cameron Goddard, Ethan Francolla, Mason Peck, Andrew Filo, Alex Burke, Olivia Gámez Holzhaus, Heath Mills, Christopher Kelly

Small Satellite Conference

Sailing to the Stars is a mission to test the deployment of free-flying light sails on the International Space Station (ISS). The objective is to understand how different deployer designs affect the stability of both the CubeSat Deployer and the light sail during and after the deployment event. Data from the IMU onboard the deployer and video footage from wall-mounted cameras are used to analyze these dynamics. The findings shall inform the design of future missions that employ this free-flying ChipSat-sail architecture.

The hardware launched with Crew-11 on August 1^st, 2025. Nicole Ayers conducted the experiment on August …

A Proposed Development Process For A Hardware-In-The-Loop Testing System For Cubesat Components, Vahini N. Patel, Victoria Coverstone

Small Satellite Conference

Hardware-in-the-loop testing systems, commonly known as FlatSats, are testbed systems in which spacecraft subsystems, such as the onboard computer (OBC), power system, attitude determination and control system (ADCS), and communications, are laid flat and interconnected as they would be in an actual spacecraft. This arrangement gives easy access to each subsystem, enabling hardware and software testing and troubleshooting without risking fully assembled flight hardware.

FlatSats are widely used throughout the aerospace industry, from government agencies like ESA and NASA to private companies and university research labs, due to their versatility in enabling parallel development. This accelerates timelines and reduces …

Characterizing Rolling-Shutter Distortions In A 1u Cubesat Camera Using Led Strobe Imaging, Sharon Chan, Arseniy Dolgov, Andrea Schildhorn, Jenny Zhu, David Michelson

Small Satellite Conference

The ArduCAM OV5642 rolling shutter sensor was selected for ALEASAT because its simpler design results in reduced cost, power consumption, and heat generation. Although rolling shutter readout can introduce image skew due to the relative motion between the CubeSat and Earth, these sensors provide sufficient resolution and sensitivity within mission constraints. The feasibility of de-skewing, therefore, depends on the stability and predictability of the rolling shutter readout. Camera testing is not currently included in ISO 19683 (Space Systems – Design qualification and acceptance tests of small spacecraft and units). This work could be a step towards addressing that omission.

The …

Power Simulation Framework For Korucusat-2 Using Freeflyer, Sahil Singh, Annabel Rong, Mukund Karthikeyan

Small Satellite Conference

A FreeFlyer-based power simulation was developed for KORUCUSAT-2, a low Earth orbit CubeSat designed to monitor silicon-anode battery behavior in space. The spacecraft model uses body-mounted solar panels with five modules on each of the +X, -X, +Y, and -Y faces. The simulation integrates orbital propagation, Earth shadowing, Sun-incidence angle, ground-station visibility, mode-dependent subsystem loads, and battery-state propagation to estimate electrical margin. Battery watt-hours and normalized state of charge are updated at each 30 s step so that critical, low-power, operations, and transmission modes can be evaluated against stored-energy limits. The framework provides a traceable prelaunch test bench for power-system …

Design And Testing Of A Compact Hold-Down And Release System For A Formation Flying Micro Satellite; Seirios, Takahiro Takano, Yoshihisa Shimada, Takahiro Yamazaki, Masaki Ito, Itsuki Fujiwara, Satoshi Ikari, Shinichi Nakasuka

Small Satellite Conference

SEIRIOS(Space Experiment of IR Interferometric Observation Satellites)

• Demonstrates accurate formation flying (FF) technology with three microsatellites (two10 kg-class and one 60 kg-class)

Hold-Down and Release System (HDRS)

1. Retain the Deputy-Sats on the Chief -Sat during the launch.
2. Enable Interferometric observation in the docking configuration with no structural deformation.
3. Enable separation of the Deputy-Sats in orbit.
4. Avoid collision during separation

Launch Load Condition(Tentative)

The response amplification factor within the Chief-Sat was empirically set as below.