NASA carried out a laser communications pointing test through two deployed CubeSats from space. The satellites recorded a flash of light from a laser communications platform aboard the Optical Communications and Sensor Demonstration spacecraft with a short-wavelength infrared camera within the CubeSat Multispectral Observation System payload, the agency said Wednesday.
Read More »NASA Presents 10th Batch of CubeSat Demonstrators
NASA unveiled a batch of candidates to participate in CubeSat satellite missions to take place over the next three years. The space agency said Friday that it will launch 16 small research satellites as auxiliary payloads at missions scheduled for 2020, 2021 and 2022 under the CubeSat Launch Initiative.
Read More »NASA Carrying Out Space Weather Experiment Mission on ISS
NASA intends to execute a mission to assist scientists in the forecast and research Earth's space weather systems. The Atmospheric Waves Experiment initiative seeks to study atmospheric airglows to confirm the mixture of forces that are contributing to space climate in the upper atmosphere, the agency said Tuesday. Researchers have also noted that the Earth's climate and the Sun's outflow of ultraviolet light particles potentially affect space weather conditions.
Read More »NASA Picks Research Proposals to Study Arctic Warming, Mineral Dust Effects on Atmosphere
NASA has chosen two research projects to build space instruments that will study Arctic warming and the effects of mineral dust on the atmosphere. The space agency said Tuesday it selected the Polar Radiant Energy in the Far Infrared Experiment, or PREFIRE, and the Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation, or EMIT, …
Read More »NASA to Showcase Orion Stage Adapter Before Launch Preparations
NASA plans to showcase an Orion stage adapter technology at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama before the space agency transfers the flight hardware to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The agency said Saturday it will display the spacecraft adapter at a media event on Tuesday ahead of preparations for the first integrated test …
Read More »NASA Aims to Advance Comms, Proximity Operation Capabilities Via 2 Cubesat Demo Missions
NASA is set to conduct technology demonstration missions for two Cubesats that took off Sunday aboard Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft. The agency said Tuesday it will conduct the Optical Communications and Sensor Demonstration and Integrated Solar Array and Reflectarray Antenna missions as part of the Small Spacecraft Technology Program. “Our primary mission …
Read More »NASA to Conduct CubeSat Study for Water Source On Moon
NASA has announced that scientist Noah Petro will lead a CubeSat mission to study the sources of water on the moon. The space agency said Thursday the Mini Lunar Volatiles Mission or MiLUV aims to determine the locations of water on the moon; and study water migration to the lunar surface …
Read More »Navdeep Bains: Canada to Develop Radar Equipment for NASA’s 2022 Mars Orbiter Mission
Canada plans to develop a radar system designed to observe the surface and subsurface of Mars as part of a NASA orbiter mission to the planet that is expected to launch in 2022, SpaceNews reported Wednesday. David Pugliese writes Navdeep Bains, Canada’s innovation science and economic development minister, said the …
Read More »NASA Selects 34 CubeSats for Space Tech Demonstration Missions
NASA has picked 34 miniature satellites that will take off as auxiliary payloads aboard space exploration missions that are scheduled for launch between 2018 and 2020. NASA selected the proposed CubeSats from the agency’s centers, universities and nonprofit organizations in 19 states and Washington as part of the eighth class of …
Read More »NASA Backs Foldable Small Satellite Radiator Development
A three-member research team led by NASA technologist Vivek Dwivedi is working on a foldable radiator designed to control heat on small satellites. NASA said Tuesday the radiator’s design is based on origami and the device works to change shape to lessen or conserve heat. The space agency funds the effort through …
Read More »