Vol. 39 No.3, December 2013 Editor: Jos Heyman FBIS
In this issue: Satellite Update 3 Cancelled Projects: SLOMAR 4 News Artemis 2 Baikonour 3 Chang'e-3 6 Cygnus-2 3 Dnepr 1 9 Dreamchaser 6 DX-1 11 EDRS-C 2 FUEGO 6 GSat-15 3 GSat-16 3 Hylas 2 Made in Russia 7 Minotaur 1 7 O3b 6 OASIS 4 Phoenix 7 Planck 3 SkySat-1 and -2 2 Tiangong-4 11 Vega 7 VEX 3
OASIS Node-1 (courtesy Space Times)
TIROS SPACE INFORMATION SkySat-1 and -2 86 Barnevelder Bend, Southern River WA 6110, Australia Tel + 61 8 9398 1322 (e-mail: [email protected])
The Tiros Space Information (TSI) - News Bulletin is published to promote the scientific exploration and commercial application of space through the dissemination of current news and historical facts. In doing so, Tiros Space Information continues the traditions of the Western Australian Branch of the Astronautical Society of Australia (1973-1975) and the Astronautical Society of Western Australia (ASWA) (1975-2006). The News Bulletin can be received worldwide by e-mail subscription only. Subscriptions can be requested by sending an e-mail address to [email protected]. Tiros Space Information reserves the right to refuse any subscription request without the need to provide a reason. All opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Editor or Tiros Space Information. All material contained in this publication may be reproduced provided due acknowledgment is made.
Calling card...
In a recent article that I drafted for the on-line Sat Magazine, I predicted that by the end of this calendar year a total of 192 satellites were to have been launched, the highest ever for a single year since spaceflight began in 1957. With the launches of a Minotaur 1 and Dnepr during November 2013, this figure is getting closer to reality with these launches placing, respectively, a staggering 29 and 33 satellites in orbit. The first two satellites for Skybox Imaging are to be launched in February 2014 from This high number is particularly attributable to about 75 so called cubesats that have been Baikonour on a Soyuz Fregat launch vehicle. launched during the year. This increase in the number of cubesats is a manifestation of, on Known as SkySat-1 and -2, these satellite will provide high resolution imageries for one hand, the miniaturization of electronic equipment and, on the other hand, the affordability commercial users. of the cubesat concept to small operators and educational institutions. It is a trend that, To obtain the 1 m resolution imagery the satellites are equipped with a unique camera to beyond doubt, will continue in the future. gather data from the sensor.
Whilst cubesats were initially used as a learning tool for students at universities, there is now an increasing use of cubesats for technology demonstrations by commercial companies. Artemis, Hylas, EDRS-C
The British Avanti company has purchased the Artemis data relay satellite from the European Jos Heyman Space Agency. Launched on 12 July 2001 Artemis demonstrated new communications techniques and services. With the ESA programme completed it is estimated that the satellite still has three years of useful life and originally it was intended to retire it in 2014 and place it in a ‘retirement’ orbit. Avanti will use the satellite to maintain a Ka-band broadband business to consumers, governments and businesses in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The sale, at a nominal amount, includes the rights to the 21.5 oE geostationary slot as well as the use of the satellite in mid-2014 when ESA wants to use it during the ATV-5 mission to ISS. Avanti currently uses the Hylas-1 and -2 satellites launched, respectively, on 26 November 2010 and 2 August 2012. Hylas-3 is planned for launch in 2015 and will be a payload carried on the ESA proposed European Data Relay Satellite (EDRS)-C satellite that will be located at 31 oE in 2015.
Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 2
Satellite Update VEX
Launches in October 2013 In the development of its Tronador 2 small satellite launch vehicle, Argentina’s National Commission on Space Activities (CONAE) intends to undertake a series of six test launches Int.Des. Name Launch date Launch vehicle Country Notes identified as VEX. 2013 037J SJ-15 sub-sat 18-Oct-2013 --- China Ejected from SJ-15 The first test flight, designated VEX-1, is expected in the coming months. It will take place 2013 057A SJ-16 25-Oct-2013 CZ 4B China Technology from the Base Naval Puerto Belgrano, Punta Alta and is expected to reach an altitude of 16 2013 058A Sirius FM-6 25-Oct-2013 Proton M/Briz M USA Communications km. VEX-1 will be a one stage vehicle with a length of 14.5 m. 2013 059A YW-18 29-Oct-2013 CZ 2C China Military recon. VEX-2, to be launched later in 2014, will be a two stage vehicle, whereas VEX-3 and -4, scheduled for 2015 and 2016, will carry more powerful engines. The final test, VEX-6, will take Other updates place in 2016 as well and is expected to reach an altitude of 80 km. After these test launches the Tronador II will be launched in 2016. Int . Des. Name Notes 2005 011A XSS-11 Re-entered 12 November 2013 2007 006A OE-Astro Re-entered 25 October 2013 2013 051A Cygnus OrbD- Undocked on 22 Oct 2013 and re-entered on 23 Oct 2013 Cygnus-2 1 The Cygnus-2 flight to ISS scheduled for 15 December 2013 will carry 33 cubesats which will be deployed in early 2014 with the NanoRack Cubesat deployers located in the airlock of the Planck Kibo module. These cubesats are: The European Space Agency turned off the transmitters on the Planck spacecraft on 23 • SkyCube, a 1U cubesat developed by Southern Stars and funded by thousands of October 2013. Launched on 14 May 2009 Planck investigated the models describing the sponsors and mobile app users around the world. Its objective is to facilitate global grass- origin and evolution of the early universe. Over an initial period of 15 months it collected the roots public outreach and educational effort whose purpose is to make space exploration cosmic background radiation, a light emitted shortly after the Big Bang. In February 2010 a accessible as never before by allowing participants to send simple broadcasts - "tweets second all-sky survey was commenced. from space". The satellite is also fitted with a camera for on-demand pictures of Earth. At the end of the 90 days mission SkyCube will inflate an onboard balloon that will make it visible to the unaided eyes and assist in de-orbiting the satellite cleanly through atmospheric drag; Baikonour • UAPSAT, a 1U cubesat developed by Universidad Alas Peruanas as a student educational project. Once in orbit the satellite can be accessed by radio amateurs and Kazakhstan’s space agency has announced it will consider offers from western countries for UAPSAT will test the behaviour of electronic design communication, orientation and the use of the Baikonour launch facility. The cosmodrome, established by the former USSR stabilization and verify the implementation of the technology and methodology used in the and transferred to Kazakhstan in 1994, is currently being rented by Russia, an agreement that manufacture of the satellite; does not run out until 2050. . • 28 Flock 1 3U cubesats, the first generation of an Earth observation constellation that is being developed by Planet Labs. They will be placed in a 400-kilometer circular orbits, providing 3-5 m resolution images of the Earth from the equator to 52 o latitude; GSat-15 and -16 • LitSat, a 1U cubesat developed by the Lithuanian Space Federation. The satellite will carry an onboard VGA camera and a GPS receiver; India’s space agency has booked Ariane 5 launches for its GSat-15 and -16 communications • LituanicaSAT-1 which will carry a VGA camera, a GPS receiver and a voice transponder. satellites. The satellite has been developed at the Vilnius University (Lithuania) and has been GSat-15 will be located at 93.5oE and will be fitted with 18 Ku band transponders as well as named after the aircraft named Lituanica that flew across the Atlantic Ocean 80 years two channels for India’s Gagan navigational system. ago; and GSat-16 will have 12 Ku band and 36 C band transponders and will be located at 55oE. • Ardusat-2, which is similar to the Ardusats that were sent to ISS earlier this year. Both satellites were originally scheduled for 2014 launches by India’s GSLV launch vehicle.
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OASIS Cancelled Projects: SLOMAR
By Jos Heyman (with some help from the correspondents of the Secretprojects forum)
In 1959 the US Air Force started the Space Logistics, Operations, Maintenance and Rescue (SLOMAR) study to generate preliminary designs of crewed space vehicles that could support manned military space stations. SLOMAR was one of ten studies that were part of the USAF’s ‘Space Development Planning Study’ that also included studies covering, amongst others, satellite interception, global surveillance, strategic orbital systems (bombardment satellites), lunar operations, and recoverable orbital launch systems.
In November 1959 a Request for Proposals was issued and ten contractors responded. Of these only Lockheed, General Dynamics, Douglas, Martin and Norair (Northrop) received further funding in June 1960 to the sum of $ 120,000 each. This was to cover studies up to June 1961. It was soon obvious to the contractors that the funding was insufficient to study all areas concerned and each contractor emphasized some aspects only.
Lockheed advanced the CL-498 design which seemed to have retractable very swept wings. The length with extended wings was 26.37 m whereas the fuselage itself had a length of 12.83 m.
Participants at the 2012 session of the International Space University, have proposed the Operations And Service Infrastructure for Space (OASIS) as the future means of providing fuel to routine space travel. OASIS is centred around three nodes in space, Node 1 which will be in low-Earth orbit, Node 2 which would be on the Moon and Node 3 which would be on the martian moon Phobos. These nodes would serve as infrastructures in space that provide the consumables for space travel. The proposal is for water to be converted by electrolysis into cryogenic propellants at the nodes when these propellants are required. Initially the water required to operate Node 1 would have to be flown up from Earth (referred to as Node 0) and tanks of water would be moved from the launch vehicle to the Node by means of a space tug. Long term it is envisaged that the water be obtained from the Moon as it is cheaper to transport water from the Moon to Node 1 than from Earth. The water used in Nodes 2 and 3 would be extracted from that celestial body. The ISU participants recommended the establishment a multi-national company to manage these fuel stations in space.
Lockheed SLOMAR concept
Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 4
General Dynamics envisaged a lifting body spaceplane with a span of 6.71 m and a length of Martin suggested a lifting body vehicle with a span of 6.65 m and length of 9.40 m with room 16.16 m. The vehicle was to consist of a re-entry glider module, that was to use lifting body for a crew of five. technology, as well as a propulsion module. The maneuverability offered by the lifting body design, allowed a landing footprint of 3200 x 9600 km. It would have been able to carry a crew of three
Martin SLOMAR concept
General Dynamics SLOMAR concept
The Douglas proposal involved a lifting body design with, apparently, two engines. Northrop advanced its N256-01 design which featured interchangeable modules tailored for each particular mission.
Douglas SLOMAR concept
Northrop SLOMAR concept Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 5
In spite of not receiving funding, McDonnell suggested its model 15 (?) whereas Bell studies Chang’e-3 its program 7069, whereas it has been suggested that North American also conducted privately funded SLOMAR studies. Absent from this all was Boeing but that company was already involved in the development of the X-20 Dyna Soar spacecraft.
The contractors’ submission were evaluated and led to the conclusion that it was possible to have an operational system in use by 1968 for support to orbits up to 925 km and that more than one satellite at a time had to be supported during a mission to make the system cost- effective (except for the space station). Furthermore it was clear that guidance of the vehicle was to be self contained and that the total capacity of the vehicles, crew plus passenger, was to be six.
These conclusions were passed on to the Lunar Expedition Project (LUNEX), a secret USAF proposal to put a man on the Moon by 1967 and that would employ a lifting body re-entry vehicle for a crew of three. These efforts were suspended when John Kennedy ordered NASA in May 1961 to get a man on the Moon before the end of the decade.
Dreamchaser
On 26 October 2013 the engineering test vehicle of the Dreamchaser re-usable crewed spacecraft was damaged in a landing test at Edwards AFB. Having been dropped from a helicopter, the spacecraft flew successfully to the landing strip but one of its wheel broke, causing the vehicle to tumble.
To be launched on 1 December 2013 from Xichang with a CZ 3B launch vehicle, the 3800 kg FUEGO Chang’e-3 lunar spacecraft consists of a Service Module and a Lunar Landing Vehicle. After its trans-lunar trajectory, the spacecraft will be placed in a 100 x 100 km orbit on 6 Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have suggested a satellite that would make December 2013 after which the Lunar Landing Vehicle will separate on 16 December 2013 every few seconds digital pictures of fire prone areas so that fire fighters could be directed to and descend to a 15 x 10 km orbit with an inclination of 45 o. At the altitude of 15 km variable detected hot spots thereby preventing the fires from growing out of control. thrusters will slow the spacecraft down descending gradually to an altitude of 100 m at which The satellite, Fire Urgency Estimator in Geosynchronous Orbit (FUEGO), would bring altitude the vehicle will hover to find a landing site without obstacles. It will then descend to an firefighting into the 21st century, rather than relying on traditional methods of fire spotting. altitude of 4 m, when the engines will shut down for a free-fall onto the lunar surface. The Whilst satellite based detection has been suggested before, detecting equipment is now so landing site will be at Sinus Iridum, at a latitude of 44 o. advanced that small hot spots could be detected easily. Such detection would require advanced computer analysis technique to detect to distinguish fires from bright lights that The 1200 kg Lunar Landing Vehicle is equipped with a radioisotope thermoelectric generator might look like fires. (RTG) to supply its power for the one year period of operation. It carries seven instruments and cameras, including an astronomical telescope fitted with an extreme ultraviolet camera for long-term continuous observations of important celestial bodies O3b and to determine how solar activity affects the ion layer near the Earth.
Once landed the 120 kg the Automatic Lunar Surface Exploring Vehicle will be deployed. The next four O3b broadband communications satellites that were scheduled for launch in Powered by solar energy, the six wheeled vehicle is fitted with four cameras as well as two September 2013 will now not be launched until March 2014. The delays allows the redesign of mechanical arms that can be used to dig up soil. It also carries a radar for detecting the a possible faulty component discovered following the launch of the first four satellites in the structure beneath the Moon surface and an optical telescope. An onboard camera can series on 25 June 2013. capture images of the lunar surface.
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Minotaur 1
The Minotaur 1 launch scheduled for 20 November 2013 place a staggering 28 payloads into orbit along with a payload that remained attached to the upper stage.
The flight delivered an Integrated Payload Stack into orbit, where the principal payload, STPSat-3, was separated. The satellite was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies using the Ball’s Configurable Platform 100 (BCP-100), which is compatible with multiple launch vehicles. The construction of the satellite platform took 47 days, whereas the integration of the payloads took 18 days, thereby demonstrating the rapid production and deployment capability required by the ORS programme.
The rover will remain operational for three months. During this time it will travel a maximum distance of 10 m, whilst exploring an area of 3 km 2.
Phoenix
DARPA is now looking for 10 retired satellites that can be used in the demonstration of the Phoenix satellite described in last month’s News Bulletin. The selection will be made from about 140 retired satellites. The satellites must be in low-inclination orbits and not spinning too STPSat-3 fast. Size is not critical. The final selection, to be made before the end of 2014, may include satellites launched outside the United States. STPSat-3 carried five experiments: • Integrated Miniaturized Electrostatic Analyzer Reflight (iMESA-R), a USAF Academy experiment to measure plasma densities and energies; Vega • Joint Component Research (J-CORE), a payload sponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL);
Arianespace has ordered 10 Vega launchers for flights commencing in 2015. • Strip Sensor Unit (SSU), an AFRL experiment to provide risk reduction through on-orbit testing and operation of a sensor assembly; • Small Wind and Temperature Spectrometer (SWATS), a Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) experiment to provide measurements of the neutral and plasma environment to Made in Russia characterize the Earth’s ionosphere and thermosphere; and • Total Solar Irradiance Calibration Transfer Experiment (TCTE), a NASA/NOAA Oleg Ostapenko, the new head of Roscosmos, has suggested that Russia should stop buying instrument to collect high accuracy, high precision measurements of total solar irradiance communications satellites (or parts thereof) from foreign countries as he considers that a form to monitor changes in solar irradiance incident at the top the Earth’s atmosphere. of subsidizing those manufacturers. Instead he wants the satellites to be purely Russian In addition the satellite carried the MMA Design LLC De-Orbit Module used to de-orbit the made. satellite in less than 25 years.
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The cubesats were carried on a CubeStack Wafers structure developed by MOOG CSA (WINCS) to acquire measurements of atmospheric and ionospheric density, composition, Engineering. This structure deployed the cubesats after STPSat-3 had been deployed to temperature and winds/drifts. avoid collisions. • Firefly, a 3U cubesat with a mass of 4 kg sponsored by the National Science Foundation and NASA to explore the relationship between lightning and terrestrial gamma ray flashes. Siena College, Hawk Institute for Space Science and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore were involved in the development. • Space-Based Telescopes for Actionable Refinement of Ephemeris (STARE)-B was the second of two 3U cubesats as described for STARE-A. It is also known as Horus. • Black Knight-1, a 1U cubesat developed at the US Military Academy as part of a three year, multi-discipline project, requiring cadets from West Point's Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, and Physics Departments to work together to develop, design, build, integrate, test, and launch the Academy's First Satellite. It demonstrated an experimental passive attitude control and dampening system and took digital pictures in space which were transmitted while in orbit. • Naval Postgraduate School Solar Cell Array Tester (NPS-SCAT), a 1U cubesat developed by the Space Systems Academic Group at NPS. The satellite carried a Solar Cell Measurement System (SMS) to measure the characteristics of a solar cell. • COPPER, a 1U cubesat originally developed by the St. Louis University for the Nanosat-6 competition, to capture infrared video of co-manifested satellites during separation and to capture infrared images of Earth’s oceans and atmosphere. • SPA-1 Trailblazer, a 1U cubesat developed at the University of New Mexico to provide a proof-of-concept demonstration of Space Plug-and-play Architecture (SPA) technology in a space environment. In addition it carried a dosimeter and a 3D conformal printed circuit board. CubeStack Wafers • Vermont Lunar Cubesat, a 1U cubesat developed at the Vermont Technical College and University of Vermont, to test four mini-thrusters and a navigations system for application The cubesats were: on a future 2 x 3U lunar-orbiter/lander cubesat. • ORS Enabler Satellite (ORSES), a 3U cubesat developed for the Operationally • SwampSat, a 1U cubesat developed at the University of Florida (UFL) to test a Control Responsive Space office of the US Army Space and Missile Defense Command to Moment Gyroscopes (CMG) for smallsats. provide communications and data for underserved tactical users. It was based on the • Cajun Advanced Picosatellite Experiment (CAPE)-2, a 1U cubesat developed by the SMDC-ONE satellite (2012-048B) but was upgraded with a Software Defined Radio University of Louisiana to demonstrate the deployment of solar panels. (Vulcan Wireless) and an NSA Type-I encryption (Raytheon) Gryphon device. • DragonSat-1, a 1U cubesat developed at the Drexel University to take pictures of auroras • ORS Tech-1 and -2, two 3U cubesat developed by the Johns Hopkins University to to observe the radiation dissipation intensity during the solar events and demonstrate a assess a multi-mission satellite as part of the Multi-Mission Bus Demonstration (MBD) Boom Fluid Damper, a boom deployment mechanism; program. The two satellites validated a robust end-to-end system architecture and key • KYSat-2, a reflight of KySat-1 that failed to orbit on 4 March 2011. It carried upgraded enabling nano-satellite technologies for future missions. components and conducted an experiment looking at the effect of the space environment • Prometheus-1 to -8, eight 1.5U cubesat developed at the Los Alamos National Laboratory on a novel chemical solar cell coating. (LANL) and the Special Operations Command (SOCOM) to assess the operational • TJ 3Sat, a 1U cubesat developed at the Thomas Jefferson Highschool that carried a effectiveness of a constellation of cubesats as well as evaluate new low-cost TextSpeak module that could convert coded data into spoken voice that could then be development and operations methodologies. relayed back to Earth over an amateur radio frequency. • Space Environmental NanoSat Experiment (SENSE)-1 and -2, two US Air Force 3U • ChargerSat-1, a 1U cubesat to improve communications for satellite operations, to cubesats to demonstrate best practices for operational CubeSat/NanoSat procurement, demonstrate passive stabilization and to test an improved method of solar power development, test, and operations as well as test cubesat bus and sensor component collection. The cubesat was built at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). technology and demonstrate the operational utility of cubesat measurements. Both • Ho‘oponopono-2, a 3U cubesat developed by students of the University of Hawaii, Honolulu satellites were fitted with a Compact Total Electron Density Sensor (CTECS) to provide (Ma-noa) in cooperation with the US Air Force, to provide a radar calibration service for the radio occultation measurements. One satellite had a Cubesat Tiny Ionospheric C-band radar tracking stations distributed around the world. Photometer (CTIP) monitoring 135.6 nm photons produced by the recombination of O+ ions and electrons whereas the other satellite had a Wind Ion Neutral Composite Suite Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 8
The upper stage of the Minotaur 1 launch vehicle carried two experiments that were not alone system for high definition digital imaging. In addition the satellite carried the separated and were, together, identified as Operationally Responsive Space (ORS)-3: Morehead-Rome Femtosatellite deployers (MRFODS), a technology demonstrator built at • Autonomous Flight Safety System (AFSS) that used on-board tracking and processing to Morehead State University for the ejection of PocketQub satellites, with a mass of under terminate an errant launch vehicle; and 400 grams. MRFODS carried Wren, $50SAT, Beakersat-1, Eagle-1 and QBScout-1.The • SoM/DoM, a highly modular and scalable de-orbit module payload provided by MMA satellite also carried two GAUSS CubeSat Deployer Systems, also known as PEPPOD, that Design under an AFRL SBIR contract as a passive aerodrag de-orbit system, similar to that deployed PUCP Sat-1 which, in turn, released the Pocket-PUCP, ICube-1, HumSat-D, carried on STPSat-3, that will de-orbit the Minotaur 1 upper stage. Dove-3 and Dove-4. • Blok Perspektivnoy Avioniki (BPA)-3, a package of Ukrainian equipment to test navigation Some previously announced cubesat for this flight were: techniques for aircraft, satellites and spacecraft that remained attached to the upper stage. • TetherSat-1 and -2, a 3U cubesat that was to split into two 1.5U cubesats connected by a 1 km tether to test electrodynamic tether propulsion. It was developed by the Naval Postgraduate School; • PhoneSat v-2-4, a 1U cubesat similar to PhoneSat v-2 (2013 016C). • Rapidprototyped Mems Propulsion And Radiation Test (RAMPART), a 2U Cubesat developed at the Morehead State University to test a propulsion system that would raise the apogee of its orbit from 500 km to 1200 km. The satellite also measured the flux of energetic particles in the lower Van Allen belt and test radiation hardened electronic components and solar cells in a high radiation environment over a period of five years. • CSIP was a 3U cubesat developed by Air Force Research Laboratory/Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/RV). It is believed that these satellites were not completed in time, allowing the addition of Prometheus-5, -6, -7 and -8 to the flight. It is likely that these satellites will be flown on a future flight.
Dnepr 1
Just a day after the Minotaur 1 launch, a Dnepr 1 launch vehicle placed 33 satellites into orbit. The main payloads were: • DubaiSat-2, an Earth observation satellite owned by the United Arab Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST). The objective of the satellite was to provide electro-optical image data, that can be commercialized, of the UAE and other areas with a spatial resolution of 1 m to 4 m, and to develop and implement new technologies, not used in DubaiSat-1, that can be used in future space programs. The 300 kg satellite was built Satrec Initiative and was based on the SI-300 platform and was fitted with a push-broom camera with TDI sensors operating in 1 panchromatic and 4 multi-spectral bands. • Science and Technology Satellite (STSAT)-3, a 150 kg microsatellite designed and built at The upper stage with Dubaisat and some other satellites showing the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). The instruments carried were: The Multi-purpose Infrared Imaging System (MIRIS) to provide infrared imagery of the Other small satellites that were placed in orbit directly from the upper stage were: galaxy and of the cosmic background; and • SkySat-1, a US commercial Earth observation satellite owned by Skybox Imaging to The Compact Imaging Spectrometer (COMIS) to provide infrared and hyperspectral provide high resolution panchromatic and multispectral images of the earth. The satellite will imagery for Earth environmental monitoring, land classification research, and operate in a polar inclined, circular orbit at approximately 450 km above the earth. monitoring of water quality. • WeatherNews Inc Satellite (WNISAT)-1 was a 10 kg nano-satellite built by Axelspace Corp. • Unisat-5, a 12 kg satellite developed by the University of Rome and the Morehead State for Weathernews Inc., a Japanese company, to monitor polar ice as an aid for ships sailing University. The satellite carried an X-ray detector to measure the polarization of gamma ray through the Arctic Sea. The satellite was equipped with optical cameras for the monitoring bursts, GlioSat, a space biomedical experiment with the goal of investigating the combined of ice as well as a near-infrared camera to distinguish clouds from ice, both of which look effects of microgravity and ionizing radiation on Glioblastoma cells behavior and a stand-
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the same within the visible wavelength. In addition the satellite carried a laser instrument to • OPTOS, a 3U cubesat developed at the Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial of the measure the CO 2 density in the atmosphere. Spanish Space Agency. It carried: • BRITE-PL-1, a Polish contribution to the BRIght-star Target Explorer (BRITE) programme. Athermalized Panchromatic Image Sensor (APIS), to study the degradation of lenses in • AprizeSat-7 and -11 (sometimes referred to as -8), to augment the US AprizeSat the space environment; communications system. Fiber Bragg Gratings for Optical Sensing (FIBOS), to measure temperature by studying • Delfi-n3Xt, a 3U cubesat developed at the Technical University of Delft in The Netherlands. a laser beam travelling across the optical gratings; and It carried the T3µPS micro-propulsion system developed by TNO in cooperation with TU Giant Magneto-Resistance (GMR), a system to study magnetic fluxes in the Earth’s Delft and University of Twente as well as ITRX, an in-orbit configurable, high-efficient magnetic field. transceiver platform developed by ISIS BV, in cooperation with TU Delft and SystematIC BV. Carried on board of Unisat-5, the Morehead-Rome Femtosatellite deployers (MRFODS), a • Triton-1, a 3U-cubesat developed and owned by Innovative Solutions In Space BV in The technology demonstrator built at Morehead State University for the ejection of: Netherlands. The objective was to demonstrate an experimental advanced Automatic • QBScout-1, a satellite developed at the Small Satellites & Space Systems Institute (4SI) of Identification System (AIS) receiver. The instrumentation also allowed radio amateur the Taksha University, USA. operators to listen to periodic downlink broadcasts. • Beakersat-1, a 2.5U PocketQub designed and built at Morehead State University, USA. The • CubeSat for Ions, Neutrals, Electrons and MAgnetic fields (CINEMA)-2 and -3, developed satellite carried circuitry to test the performance of the satellite. by the Kyung Hee University of South Korea in cooperation with the University of California, • Wren, a 1U PockerQub for the STADIKO company of Germany to test miniaturized µPP- Berkeley to monitor space weather and study Energetic Neutral Atoms. Thrusters and a new image based navigation system. The satellite was also equipped with • GomX-1, a Danish a 2U cubesat developed by GomSpace that was fitted with a a camera system to take pictures of the Earth, the sun and deep space objects. demonstration payload capable of tracking from space trans-oceanic flights by reception of • $50SAT, a 1.5U PocketQub satellite developed at Morehead State University, USA. The the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) signal emitted by the aircraft. satellite tested the HOPE RFM22 system for transmitting and receiving data from a satellite, • FUNcube-1, a satellite created by AMSAT-UK to transmit signals that could be easily in orbit. received directly by schools and colleges for educational outreach purposes. • University of Würzburg Experimentalsatellit (UWE)-3, a technology demonstration project Unisat-5 also carried two GAUSS CubeSat Deployer Systems, also known as PEPPOD, that cubesat developed and built by students of the University of Würzburg, Germany, to an deployed: active 3-axis Attitude Determination and Control system using magnetorquers. • Humanitarian Satellite Network-Demonstrator (HumSat-D), a 1U cubesat developed at the • CubeBug-1, also known as Capitán Beto and Manolito, a 2U cubesat developed by University of Vigo, Spain. HumSat-D was the first satellite of the proposed HumSat Satellogic S.A., and Radio Club Bariloche in Argentine. It was a technology demonstration constellation to provide worldwide store-and-forward communication capabilities to areas mission for a new cubesat platform design and carried an ARM based on-board computer, without infrastructure. a nano-reaction wheel with its driver circuit and a low resolution camera, all based on COTS • ICube-1 1U, a cubesat developed by the Institute of Space Technology, Islamabad, components. After the technology demonstration, the satellite was made available to radio Pakistan and carried a low-resolution camera, a 3-axis magnetometer and several amateurs. temperature sensors. • NEE 02 Krysaor, a 1U cubesat from Ecuador that used a back-up of the NEE-01 but was • PUCPSat-1 was a 1.27 kg cubesat built at the Radio Astronomy Institute of the Pontificia fitted with a different arrangement of solar panels. The satellite offered real time video Universidad Católica del Perú (INRAS-PUCP). After it was deployed it collected transmission and tested the solar array. temperature reading with 19 sensors and also deployed the 127 g Pocket-PUCP • Høgskolen i Narvik CubeSat (HINCube), a 1U cubesat built by students at the Høgskolen i picosatellite which measured 8.35 x 4.95 x 1.55 cm and also took readings. Narvik (HiN), Norway. The payload consisted of a camera that was used to take pictures of • Dove-3 and -4, two remote sensing technology demonstration satellite for Cosmogia Inc. of the Earth whilst it also carries several thermal sensors to measure the temperature variation the USA. of the satellite. • ZACube-1, a 1U cubesat developed at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Like with the Minotaur 1 launch there were several payloads that, at one stage were manifested, Town, South Africa. It carried a high frequency (HF) beacon transmitter to characterize the but somehow did not make it. These were: Earth’s ionosphere and to calibrate the South African National Space Agency (SANSA)’s • Eagle-1, a ‘pocket qub’ satellite measuring 178 mm x 56 mm x 56 mm developed at the auroral radar installation in Antarctica. Morehead State University, USA. The spacecraft was designed to provide a component • First Munich Orbital Verification Experiment (First-MOVE), a 1U cubesat built at the testbed for various spacecraft technologies, primarily among them being a de-orbit system Technical University of München, Germany. The satellite carried a CCD camera as well as that also increased the spacecraft radar cross section. two deployable solar panels carrying a new generation of solar cell. • e-st@r-2, a 1U cubesat developed by Politecnico di Torino, Italy. The 1 kg satellite was to • VELOX P-2, a 1U cubesat built at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The test an active attitude determination and control system based on magnetic actuators as satellite tested an attitude determination and control system developed at the university. well as various components and materials.
Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 10
Tiangong-4 The 13 experiment racks that are being planned will include a greenhouse for studies on plants and seeds, as well as a rack that can house mice, fruit flies, nematodes and other small The names of the various modules for the Tiangong-4 space station have now been revealed animals. with the Core Cabin Module to be known as Tianhe, the first Laboratory Cabin Module as There will be an enclosed glove box equipped with fine robotics and microscopes and three Wentian and the second Laboratory Cabin Module as Xuntian. With this all China will develop refrigerators for storing samples at various temperatures. a cargo spaceship with the name Tianzhou. Three science racks will be devoted to microgravity research to study fluid physics. Tianhe will be based on Tiangong-3 and will have a length of 18.1 m and a diameter of 4.2 m. The materials science investigations will be accommodated by a high-temperature experiment The two Laboratory Cabin Modules will be 14.4 m long and have a diameter of 4.2 m whilst rack with two furnaces whilst there will also be a container-less materials experiment rack the 6000 kg capacity Tianzhou cargo spacecraft will be based on Tiangong-1 and have a outfitted with an electrostatic levitation furnace and laser heating. diameter on 3.35 m. Proposed facilities in the field of fundamental physics will include a cold atom experiment rack The Core Cabin Module (Tianhe) will be launched in 2018 whilst the Wentian and Xuantin to test the behaviour of ultracold rubidium and potassium atoms in microgravity. Laboratory Cabin Modules will orbited in 2020 and 2022. A high-precision time frequency experiment rack will include a hydrogen atomic clock, a The space station, which will be placed in an orbit ranging from 350 to 450 km with an cooled atom microwave clock, a cooled atom optical clock and other equipment. inclination of 42 o, will have an operational lifetime of 10 years. It will have a crew of three that Finally there will be a high-microgravity level rack that will reduce the microgravity will be rotated every six months using Shenzhou spacecraft. environment by two to three orders of magnitude. The use of the remaining racks has not yet been decided. An external exposure platform and equipment for Earth observations and astronomy is also planned.
DX-1
Russian company Dauria Aerospace hopes to have its Dauria Experimental (DX)-1 satellite launched in February 2014 on board of a Soyuz 2-1B/Fregat M, along with as number of other satellites. DX-1 is a small technology satellite to test the equipment, technology and software to create a new small spacecraft platform. The satellite will carry an Automatic Identification System (AIS) to track ships.
The Tiangong-4 space station with modules
The scientific experiments that will be conducted on the space station will concentrate on five areas: Dauria Aerspace is Russia’s first private space company that plans to deploy various • fundamental biology; constellations of low cost satellites: • biotechnology; • Sagitta, for remote asset monitoring and control; • space radiation biology; • Perseus, for moderate resolution earth observation; • fundamental studies on cells; and • Pyxis, for polar broadband communications; and • interdisciplinary studies, including biological mechanics research and hypomagnetic • Auriga, an earth observation system for global natural resource monitoring, management, biology. precision farming, and other industries that need multispectral images. Tiros Space Information – News Bulletin, December 2013, page 11