Teams/Satellites
The Aerospace and Innovation Academy, Aerospace Public Policy Institute, Blue Sky Learning, and Bluecube Aerospace
WeissSat-1
Weiss CubeSat Development Team In the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year, with the arrival of Mr. Kevin Simmons, middle school students were introduced to aerospace and CubeSats. The Weiss CubeSat Development Team (WCDT) was formed with the goal of launching satellite into low Earth orbit (LEO) within three years. Since then WCDT students have been dedicated to learning about CubeSats, developing relationships with aerospace Professionals, and preparing to build, test, and fly the WeissSat-1. The Weiss CubeSat Team concluded with the launch of the WeissSat-1.
CapSat-1
Launched in 2022 from the ISS, CapSat-1 is a technology demonstration mission, validating a capacitor-based electrical power system in a 1U CubeSat. This mission validates capacitors’ power/voltage efficiency and compares that to the LiPo battery over time throughout a mission of approximately 6 months. Though its secondary mission is for technology demonstration, CapSat-1’s primary mission is education. The CapSat-1 mission has successfully developed into a fully manifested satellite in low-Earth orbit (LEO), providing students with the necessary opportunities to develop a satellite mission and gain hands-on learning experiences in the STEM workforce.
Wolfpack CubeSat Development Team
FlipSat-1
FlipSat, a 0.5U Hosted payload will consider multiple parallel microprocessors with varying levels of radiation hardening which will operate concurrently with a ground unit. Optimization of the radiation hardening is critical to insuring the consistent operation of microprocessors in space. FlipSat can provide direct benefits to future space missions. This mission is scheduled to fly in the NSL TROOP device on an ESPA ring in 4Q-2023.
AMARIS Rover
BLUECUBE Aerospace and the Wolfpack CubeSat Development Team are focused on future lunar exploration and is developing the AMARIS lunar rover based on CubeSat technology. The goal of the AMARIS mission is to evaluate techniques for reducing the negative impacts of dust accumulation on rover solar panels and frames. Lunar dust is believed to have toxic properties that can affect people and machines. This dust adhesion problem was widely reported during the Apollo era missions and still exists today. The experiment from which this paper is based investigates how electric and magnetic fields may be used to mitigate this problem. A vacuum dust-box was designed, composed of 5 mm thick Lexan sheets in which flight-grade photovoltaic panels and anodized aluminum chassis components were subjected to regolith simulant. The goal is to determine if there is a feasible solution to mitigate the dust build up that occurs in space. The knowledge gained from
this experiment will be used in designing a 1U lunar rover in the near future.
Conferences/Activities
BCA/WCDT Students have written and presented accepted papers at over 100 national and international conferences since 2018. The most frequently attended conferences include the International Astronautical Congress (IAC), SmallSat Conference, the Committee for Space Research (COSPAR), the International Space Development Conference (ISDC), SmallSat Education Conference (SSEC), AIAA SciTech Conference, the USA Science and Engineering Festival, and the AGU Astrobiology Conference.