Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Exploring outer space has been, for the longest time, the domain of
governments and large corporations. This situation is now changing
dramatically thanks to new technologies and ideas like the Internet,
open hardware, and crowd-source funding. Just as open software
helped usher in the dot-com era, so open hardware is helping to launch
a new space era—and it's one that we can all participate in. The follow-
ing is a brief introduction that is intended to inspire you to seek out
more information.
CubeSats
A CubeSat is a small open source satellite design that was released in
1999 and has exploded in popularity as electronics have become cheap-
er, smaller, and more powerful. The basic design of a 1U CubeSat is a
10-cm cube that weighs no more than 1.33 kg. The design can be
stacked to create larger satellites. A 2U CubeSat is 20 cm long with
10-cm sides; a 3U CubeSat is 30 cm long with 10-cm sides (you get the
idea). CubeSats are typically launched from a Poly-PicoSatellite Orbit-
al Deployer (P-POD), although a company called Nanoracks now
launches them from the International Space Station (ISS).
Because of the small size of the P-POD and the common design re-
quirements for CubeSats, it is much easier and cheaper to build and
launch a CubeSat than a traditional microsatellite. Several companies
provide ready-made satellite parts, and new companies like Planet Labs
and Ardusat have actually launched CubeSats to offer satellite services.
Nanoracks
Nanoracks is the FedEx of space companies. This company works with
NASA to launch small satellites and experiments to the International
Space Station for a fee. If you wanted to launch an experiment in space
before Nanoracks came into being but you didn't have millions of dol-
lars, you had to convince an organization like NASA that your experi-
ment deserved a launch. This could take years, if it ever happened at
all. Nanoracks realized the market needed a second “pay to play” op-
tion and worked with NASA to install science modules on the ISS.
Customers pay the fee and ensure their experiment meets the design
and safety criteria; Nanoracks handles the rest.
The NASA/Nanoracks collaboration has been one of the most suc-
cessful public/private partnerships in the space industry. The company
is building the much-needed “space infrastructure” to enable affordable
