CubeSat Deployment Research Articles

Design and verification of CubeSat deployer with the dual redundancy electromagnetic open door mechanism

As of May 2023, 2, 105 CubeSats have been launched and deployed into orbit. Aiming at the problem of CubeSat deployment, an innovative CubeSat deployer with Dual- redundant Electromagnetic Door Opening Mechanism (DEDOM) is designed. DEDOM has the advantages of a simple structure, short response time, low cost, and high reliability. It is a non-explosive actuator whose core component is based on an electromagnetic system. Dual redundant design compared to other similar institutions ensures successful release of the deployer door and improves reliability. At the same time, a rotary locking device is designed, and after the door is opened to a certain angle, it is positioned and locked to ensure that the door will not swing. The deployer has successfully passed ground environment tests such as mechanical tests, thermal environment experiments, and on-orbit verification, which fully proves the feasibility of the deployer design.

Design and Development of a 3D-Printed CubeSat by Go Science

This project outlines the design, development, and construction of a 3D-printed CubeSat, a miniature satellite, equipped with an ESP32 microcontroller, an MPU9250 inertial measurement unit, and a BMP280 barometric pressure sensor module. The CubeSat adheres to standard CubeSat dimensions and incorporates a range of systems, including power management, communication, and data collection, to enable its functionality in space. The CubeSat's structure was meticulously designed using CAD software, and 3D printing technology was employed to fabricate its lightweight, space-grade casing. The ESP32 microcontroller serves as the central processing unit, interfacing with the MPU9250 and BMP280 sensors via I2C communication. Custom firmware was developed to gather sensor data and manage power resources efficiently. Solar Panels are also used for redundant Power Support. The CubeSat features a wireless transceiver for communication with ground stations, facilitating telemetry data transmission and command reception. This CubeSat can collect sensor’s data and transmit it to Ground Station for analysis, contributing valuable insights into its surrounding environment. Maintenance and potential upgrades will be considered to extend its operational lifespan. This project exemplifies the intricate process of designing and developing a CubeSat, highlighting the integration of advanced sensors and microcontrollers in a 3D-printed structure. The CubeSat's deployment underscores its potential for scientific research and data collection in the realm of space exploration. Developed by Go Science Technical Team. IndexTerms – Go Science, CubeSat, ESP32, MPU9250, BMP280, Environmental Monitoring, Space Technology, Sensor Integration, Data Collection, Climate Research, Microsatellites, Miniature Satellites, Space Sensors, Atmospheric Data, Earth Observation, Remote Sensing, Environmental Science, Climate Monitoring, Sensor Fusion, Space Exploration.

Altamira Comet proof-of-concept

Beginning some 30,000 years ago, nine of our Paleolithic ancestors painted their unique hands on the walls of Altamira Cave in Cantabria, Spain – an act of communication by the community, for the community. We present a proof-of-concept for the Altamira Comet, a 21st century work that expresses the evolution of this gesture in our digital age: we all go. The Altamira Comet invites everyone on Earth to participate, individually and uniquely, through our contemporary society’s iconic representation of identity: the selfie. Everyone’s selfies will be cast as microscopic low relief golden busts, frozen into a ball of ice, and deployed into heliocentric orbit as a sublimating comet, embodying millions of individual humans from around the world. The proof-of-concept is a vial of five million discrete selfie sculptures in solution, using computer vision, electron-beam lithography and high-vacuum deposition to fabricate each selfie the size of a grain of cosmic dust. We also discuss plans to deploy the comet using an off-the-shelf CubeSat deployer and to scale the work to support a goal of at least one billion global participants.

Fast Ocean Front Detection Using Deep Learning Edge Detection Models

Small-scale ocean fronts play a significant role in absorbing the excess heat and CO2 generated by climate change, yet their dynamics are not well understood. Existing in-situ and remote sensing measurements of the ocean have inadequate spatial and temporal coverage to map small-scale ocean fronts globally. Additionally, conventional algorithms to generate ocean front maps are computationally intensive and require data with long lead times. We propose machine learning (ML) models to detect temperature and chlorophyll ocean fronts from unprocessed and radiometrically uncorrected satellite imagery by transfer learning from existing models for edge detection. We use two separate datasets: one based on conventional approaches to ocean front detection, and a second based on human annotated ground truth <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">1</sup> . The deep learning front detection approach significantly reduces the resources and overall lead times needed for detecting ocean fronts. The deep learning models are developed with resource-constrained edge compute platforms like CubeSats in mind, as such platforms can address the spatial and temporal coverage challenges. The highest performing models achieve accuracies of 96% and make predictions in milliseconds using unoptimized desktop CPUs and less than 100 MB of storage; these capabilities are well-suited for CubeSat deployment.

Design and Analysis of a New Deployer for the in Orbit Release of Multiple Stacked CubeSats

More and more CubeSats cooperate to implement complex space exploration missions. In order to store and deploy more CubeSats in a rocket-launch mission, this paper presents a new CubeSat deployer with large-capacity storage. Different from the traditional one with the compression springs, the deployer with electromagnetic actuators is proposed to achieve the transportation and release. A new electromagnetic actuator with high thrust density was applied to adjust the release speeds of the CubeSats with different masses, and a new electromagnetic convey platform with attractive force was designed to transfer the stacked CubeSats to the release window. The equivalent magnetic circuit method was used to the establish electromagnetic force models. The simplified dynamic models of the transportation and release were built. The magnetic field, electromagnetic force, and motion characteristics were analyzed. The prototype was developed to verify the performance of the proposed configuration of the deployer with electromagnetic actuators. The experimental results show that stacked CubeSats can be transported smoothly even under constant external interference. The launcher achieved high thrust density and effectively adjusted the separation speed of the CubeSats.

A novel design of CubeSat deployment system for transformable structures

One of the challenges of nanosatellites use is the limited payload volume. In this regard, transformable structures are frequently used in the development of nanosatellites. Most modern deployment mechanisms are based on thread burning. However, they have a significant disadvantage, which consists in a difficult procedure of thread replacement. The paper presents the novel design of a deployment system for CubeSat nanosatellites, which is based on Rose's alloy. In the “cold” state, the Rose's alloy holds the deployable structure in a closed position, and when temperature reaches 92–98° Celsius, the alloy melts and a structure deploys. On the basis of the experiments, the required heating power for deployment was determined. The heating time and kinematic characteristics of the system were also estimated experimentally. Our paper presents electronic circuitry and the deployment algorithm of the proposed system. We also consider abnormal operation of the deployment system. In addition, a set of environmental tests was carried out: thermal tests, vacuum tests, vibration and shock tests. The proposed system has successfully passed all the experiments and will be launched to space in 2022.

Validation and verification of a nanosatellite passive isolator for pyroshock attenuation

Due to the recent development of the micro-launcher technology, soon nanosatellites are expected to be launched mainly as primary payloads and thus experience intense pyroshock events. This study proposes a novel CubeSat deployment system which alleviates such mechanical shock levels. The passive isolator Sorbothane thin films were integrated within the dynamic envelope of a testpod to evaluate the desired attenuation effects. A metal-to-metal mid-field shock testing (MFST) facility was manufactured to perform in-plane (IP) and out-of-plane (OOP) impacts. The MFST is capable of generating mechanical shock waves up to 10,000g for OOP direction and 5000g for IP excitations. The experiments illustrated that the Sorbothane isolators can attenuate shock levels by 3 dB and the flat adapter (mechanical joint) can attenuate shock levels by 4 dB. The measurements were successfully validated using the positive and the negative shock response spectrum (SRS) approach. In addition to that, the commercially available finite element analysis software ABAQUS was utilized to verify the experimental measurements and simulate the mechanical shock effects using explicit analysis.

First results from an uncooled LWIR polarimeter for cubesat deployment

A compact long-wave infrared (LWIR) channeled spectro-polarimeter (IRCSP) has been developed for integration into the NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) funded submm-wave and LWIR polarimeters project to measure the microphysical properties of cloud ice. Once deployed, the IRCSP will produce the first linear Stokes measurements ( S0 , S1 , S2 ) of upper-tropospheric cirrus clouds from 8.5 to 12.5 μm. For the first time, a compact, light-weight, and uncooled LWIR polarimeter with off-the-shelf thermal optical components is demonstrated. We report narrowband calibration measurements which quantify metrics of polarimetric system performance. The response of the system to linearly polarized light is shown to agree with both a Mueller matrix model and modulation function for narrowband calibration measurements with an R2 > 0.98 from 8 to 11 μm. The polarimetric efficiency is >0.8 from 8 to 11 μm for narrowband measurements indicating satisfactory performance of the polarization optics. Beyond 11 μm, the agreement is significantly reduced as thermal noise compounds with reduced detector response. Ultimately, the observed system performance is limited by the spectral response of the detector past 11 μm in addition to the thermal noise inherent for the measurements at room temperature.

Preliminary Delta-V Analysis to Deploy a CubeSat Impactor from the Mothership During a Flight Inside the Lunar Sphere of Influence

The current work analyzes the delta-V characteristics to deploy a lunar CubeSat impactor for an early phase feasibility study. The lunar CubeSat impactor is assumed to ride on the mothership and be deployed to hit the lunar surface during a flight inside the lunar sphere of influence (SOI). Different combinations of the periselene approach altitude and velocity for the mothership are considered to cover different flight trajectory environments, and the relevant optimal control problem is formulated under two-body dynamics for an early stage analysis. The CubeSat deployment moment is also varied to observe the associated affects. As a result, the optimal delta-V magnitude and direction characteristics with respect to different deployment times are analyzed and discussed via an example impact trajectory. Earlier deployment is preferable in the current conceptual mission not only for conserving delta-V, but also from the point view of a real-world ground operational timeline. In terms of the final impact conditions observed, the strongest candidate science that can be accomplished with the proposed concept would be to measure the lunar magnetic anomalies during the impact phase. The proposed CubeSat deployment strategy could be a more reliable choice because it can be accomplished with a delta-V that is similar to that in previous work while minimizing the effects on the original design baseline of the mothership’s flight trajectory. Moreover, the proposed approach is applicable to any type of planetary mission, lander or orbiter and to any planet.

Modeling of the CubeSat deployment and initial separation angular velocity estimation

CubeSats applications are recently advanced from purely education tools to actual scientific missions. To meet the high requirements of such scientific missions, the nonlinear deployment dynamics and the initial separation angular velocity from the deployer are required to be investigated and estimated. In this paper, the deployment process is described by single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) and three-degree-of-freedom (TDOF) vibro-impact models for different deployment stages, and the evolution process from doubling bifurcation to chaos is visualized by the Poincaré section and global bifurcation graph. According to the simulation results, reasonable initial separation angular velocities are consequently estimated. Simultaneously, the largest ratio of the excitation frequency and the natural frequency of the satellite in the deployer is found, which guides the design of CubeSat deployer.

LituanicaSAT-2: Design of the 3U in-Orbit Technology Demonstration CubeSat

The QB50 Mission is a network of 36 CubeSats built by universities all over the world to perform first-class science in the largely unexplored thermosphere around Earth. 28 QB50 CubeSats will be launched to the International Space Station via NanoRacks LLC and deployed from the NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer (NRCSD) during Q2 of 2017. The remaining CubeSats will be deployed via an Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) launcher rocket as secondary payloads during Q2 of 2017 as well. LituanicaSAT-2 will be deployed with the latter group of satellites. This network of small satellites will have by no means a small mission: to carry out long-term measurements of key parameters and constituents in yet largely unexplored lower thermosphere and ionosphere. While in orbit, the satellites will slowly descend to lower and lower layers of thermosphere due to atmospheric drag, revealing the spatial and temporal distributions of the parameters measured [1].

Potential trajectory design for a lunar CubeSat impactor deployed from a HEPO using only a small separation delta-V

Potential impact trajectories for a lunar CubeSat impactor mission are designed and analyzed under the condition that only a small delta-V from the mechanical separation mechanism from the mother-ship is available. The orbit of the mother-ship from which the CubeSat is deployed is assumed to be a Highly Elliptical Polar Orbit (HEPO) around the Moon, and candidate peri- and aposelene altitudes are investigated. The resultant trajectory parameters for the CubeSat impactor are also analyzed. The impact footprint dispersion characteristics are roughly estimated considering the uncertainties that may arise at the moment of CubeSat deployment. As a result, a set of HEPO shapes that can successfully impact the lunar surface using a deployment delta-V of only 2m/s is discovered. The delta-V required to separate the CubeSat, which is up to tens of m/s, can be greatly reduced depending on the geometry between the Earth and the orientation of the HEPO of the mother-ship at the moment of deployment. The dispersion characteristics of the impact footprint are more sensitive to the uncertainties in the velocity than in the position at the time of separation. From the point of view of the current proposed trajectory design, an uncertainty of less than several tens of cm/s in the velocity should be guaranteed for successful impact within a radius of several tens of kilometers of the target.