IEEE Spectrum November, 2013 - 21

From top: surrey satellite technology; planetary resources; nasa

SMAll SATS
a gamma-ray detector, a Geiger counter,
and a 1.3-megapixel digital camera.
The ArduSats are attracting a variety of experiments and experimenters, says Chris Wake, NanoSatisfi's vice
president of business development:
"Computer science classes are using it
to train students on open-source software and hardware, while an earth sciences class has experiments to measure
Earth's magnetosphere."
NanoSatisfi keeps the price down by
running 10 experiments in parallel on
each ArduSat and using off-the-shelf
components. The satellites have no
radiation shielding and will remain aloft
for just a few months before reentering
the atmosphere and burning up.
NanoSatisfi isn't alone in the citizenscience satellite game. In February, the
United Kingdom orbited STRaND-1
(Survey Training, Research, and Nanosatellite Demonstrator), the first satellite
built around a standard consumer smartphone, the Google Nexus One. The phone
was loaded with Android apps developed
by university students and enthusiasts,
such as an app intended to determine
the satellite's position using the onboard
camera. Communication with STRaND-1
was lost shortly after launch but was
restored a few months later.
In April, NASA launched its own pair of
Android PhoneSats, costing just $3500
apiece. During their week-long lives before reentry, the satellites took sensor
readings and snapped images of Earth,
beaming down the data in small packets to
amateur radio operators around the world.
While building a satellite may be easier than ever, getting it into space remains fearsomely complex. For the
past four years, a small company called
NanoRacks has been flying science experiments into orbit on board the space
shuttle and on ISS resupply missions.
NASA and Japanese astronauts control

britain's phone-based sTrand-1 [top]
had a communications blackout for a few
months after launch; Planetary resources
plans to sell amateur astronomers access
to a small space telescope [center]; and
nasa's smartphone satellite [bottom]
orbited just a few days before reentry.

sPecTruM.Ieee.orG

the experiments, many of which have
been designed by high school students.
Over 20 000 U.S. students have been involved, raising the necessary funds (a 30day mission starts at $30 000) from bake
sales and car washes.
Last year, NanoRacks deployed its first
satellite from an ISS air lock. "Today we
have over 50 satellites under contract.
We're now designing our own cubesat
dispenser to maximize how many satellites we can put out during a hatch opening," says Jeffrey Manber, NanoRacks'
founder and managing director.
NanoRacks will handle the November
launch of the aforementioned ArduSats
as well as two other high-profile citizenscience satellites. Planetary Resources,
a start-up hoping to prospect and mine
near-earth asteroids, is planning space
telescopes that armchair astronomers
will use to take high-resolution photos
of celestial objects for $200. Cheaper
still is SkyCube, built by Southern Stars.
This ultrabasic satellite will broadcast a
120-character tweet of your choice from
orbit for just $1 or shoot a low-res image
of Earth for $6.
"We want to democratize access to
space by crowdsourcing data analysis, software, and hardware," says Peter
Diamandis, cofounder of Planetary
Resources. Crowdsourcing money is also
part of the plan: NanoSatisfi, Planetary
Resources, and SkyCube all launched
their efforts on the crowd-funding website Kickstarter.
"Kickstarter validated our market areas
around researchers, students, teachers, programmers, and hobbyists," says
Wake. His company, NanoSatisfi, has
since completed a round of venture capital funding. NanoRacks' Manber sees
a bright future ahead: "I believe that by
2020, every school district in America
will have had the chance to participate
in space." -MArk hArrIS
|

NorTH AMerIcAN

NoV 2013

http://sPecTruM.Ieee.orG

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Spectrum November, 2013