Contractor 3

I. Launch

III.•Formation•Alignment with Star•Pictures•Data downlink•Stationkeeping

II. Deployment

IV. Deorbit

Twelve 3U cubesats External, deployable telescope

featureThruster and Attitude control systemSolar and battery powerAbility to individually transmit data

to groundCircular formation for maximum

resolution

Pegasus XL – Orbital Sciences

Cape Canaveral, FL : Latitude 28°N

Launch due East i=28°

Line Circle Concentric Circles

Y Shape Plus Sin Wave

Formation Most Likely # of Pixels

Maximum # of Pixels

Line 1 12

Circle 6 10

Concentric Circles 6 7

Y Shape 6 5

Plus 7 6

Sin Wave 5 8

Decided to focus formation on detecting NEAs with 140 m diameter.

The equally spaced circle formation provided an acceptable maximum number of pixels

Resolution = 250 meters

12 Cube Sat Solution

3U Cubesat

Camera System

Attitude ControlSystem

Battery System

Propulsion System

Solar Panels

Optical System

Components

Power System Solar panels Batteries

Communication System Transmitter Antenna

Propulsion System Thrusters

Attitude System Attitude

Determination & Control System

Optical System Telescope parts Camera

Primary Power Source: Solar Panels High quality PCB substrate & Kapton

overlay. Generate up to 1 Watt of power each Number of panels is dependent power

required and space available

Backup Power Source: Lithium-Polymer Batteries High energy density Previous success on satellites Battery size is dependent on power

required (150 Watt-hour per kilogram)

Regulator: EPS board Will regulate and monitor power

generated. Under-voltage and over-current

protection.

Distributor: Power Distribution Module Will distribute power to all components in

the Cubesat. Under-voltage and over-current

protection.

Calculated data rate of 80 kb/s.Estimated fly over GS time of 7 min. Individual communication of each

satellite with ground station. S – Band Transmitter▪ 2 mb/s data rate

S – Band patch antenna

Large maneuvers: Pulse Plasma Thruster

Delta V = 250 m/s for mission duration Typical shot energy 1.8J Mass <200g including 10g of propellant Copper Tungsten electrode provides

durability Power draw of less than 0.5W Specific impulse measured at 590s

Blue Canyon Technologies XACT

Fully integrated solution:3 axis stellar attitude determination3 Reaction Wheels3 torque rods IMUMagnetometerSun sensorsComputer

Cassegrain Reflector primary concave mirror secondary convex mirror

CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) Detector CCD 595 from Fairchild Imaging Designed for space applications 9216 x 9216 full frame CCD array

COMPONENT COSTSolar Panels 25,000Battery 5,000Antenna 4,500Transmitter 8,900Thrusters 18,000Attitude Control System 18,000Telescope 20,000Photodetector/Camera 3,000EPS 4,500Power Distribution Module 7,750

Total 114,650Total Cube Sat Cost 1,210,800