The University Nanosat Program: an adaptable, responsive and realistic capability demonstration vehicle

Abstract

The University Nanosat Program (UNP) is a student satellite program cosponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/VS), the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), the National Aeronautics & Space Administration's Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA), and the Air Force Space Test Program (STP). The program was initiated in 1999 with the goal of flying student-built nanosatellites on the space shuttle within two years of grant award to universities. The program is currently in its second award cycle, with past hardware flight-ready but not yet manifested. Within the context of past program successes and challenges, there exist unique opportunities for capability demonstration using the University Nanosat Program structure. Particular points of interest include the symbiosis of government and academia on a flight program; the training of the next generation of aerospace professionals; and the opportunity to infuse existing aerospace institutions with out-of-the-box methodologies and technologies which incorporate the use of next-generation deployables and science instrumentation, autonomous controls, MEMS, distributed architectures, as well as advanced communications, power systems, and sensors. Particular attention is paid to evaluating program success based on such aspects as cost-sharing advantages, education and training, program flexibility and responsiveness.