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CubeSat for Solar Particles
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<h2 id="objective">Objective</h2> <p>Measuring <a href="/facts/Space_weather/FfwUCv2G">space weather</a> that can create a wide variety of effects at <a href="/facts/Earth/HLLmDfj0">Earth</a>, from interfering with radio communications to tripping up satellite electronics to creating electric currents in power grids, is of importance. To create a network of <a href="/facts/Space_weather/FfwUCv2G">space weather</a> stations would require many instruments scattered throughout space millions of miles apart, but the cost of such a system is prohibitive.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> Though the <a href="/facts/CubeSat/jL2IpYKd">CubeSats</a> can only carry a few instruments, they are relatively inexpensive to launch because of their small mass and standardized design. Thus, CuSP also was intended as a test for creating a network of space science stations.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="the-cusp-team">The CuSP team</h2> <p>CuSP Spacecraft Team:<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> </p><p>Dr. Mihir Desai, PhD: Principal Investigator </p><p>Mike Epperly: Project Manager </p><p>Dr. Don George, PhD: Mission System Engineer </p><p>Chad Loeffler: Flight Software Engineer </p><p>Raymond Doty: Spacecraft Technician </p><p>Dr. Frederic Allegrini, PhD: SIS Instrument Lead </p><p>Dr. Neil Murphy, PhD: VHM Instrument Lead </p><p>Dr. Shrikanth Kanekal, PhD, MERiT Instrument Lead </p> <h2 id="payload">Payload</h2> <p>This CubeSat carried three scientific instruments:<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> </p> <ul><li>The Suprathermal Ion Spectrograph (SIS), is built by the <a href="/facts/Southwest_Research_Institute/8ljrULa4">Southwest Research Institute</a> to detect and characterize low-energy <a href="/facts/Solar_energetic_particles/I66CkeVs">solar energetic particles</a>.</li> <li>Miniaturized Electron and Proton Telescope (MERiT), is built by the NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and will return counts of high-energy solar energetic particles.</li> <li>Vector Helium Magnetometer (VHM), being built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will measure the strength and direction of magnetic fields.</li></ul> Propulsion <p>The satellite features a <a href="/facts/Cold_gas_thruster/XkUjyILE">cold gas thruster</a> system for propulsion, <a href="/facts/Spacecraft_attitude_control/hE6aMu26">attitude control</a> (orientation) and orbital maneuvering.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="spacecraft-bus">Spacecraft bus</h2> <p>The spacecraft's bus consisted of:<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> </p> <ul><li>SwRI Spacecraft Integrator: Design, Assembly, Integration and Test</li> <li>SwRI SATYR Command and Data Handling Unit</li> <li>SwRI Flight Software</li> <li>Clyde-Space AAC Electrical Power System <ul><li>BCR MPPT converters</li> <li>LiPo Batteries and</li> <li>Deployable and Fixed Solar Arrays</li></ul></li> <li>VACCO MiPS Cold Gas Thruster</li> <li>Blue Canyon Technologies XACT ADCS with Integrated Thruster Control</li> <li>SwRI Spacecraft Structure Mechanical and Thermal (SMT)</li> <li>NASA JPL/SDL IRIS X-Band Deep Space Transponder</li> <li>NASA GSFC Mission Operations Center</li> <li>NASA Deep Space Network Ground Communication</li></ul> <h2 id="flight-results">Flight results</h2> <ul><li>After a successful launch of the SLS at 1:47 am EST on November 16 2022, The Orion/ICPS performed a Trans-Lunar Injection and separated.</li> <li>Shortly thereafter, CuSP was deployed from its launch canister in the ICPS.</li> <li>Twenty-three minutes after deployment, DSN received Open Loop Receiver (OLR) telemetry from CuSP indicated it had booted up, detumbled, deployed solar arrays, and assumed a SAFE, Sun-pointing, orientation.</li> <li>It was operating perfectly until...</li> <li>OLR monitoring of the radio signal indicated that the transmitter carrier signal vanished after transmitting for 1 hour and 15 minutes.</li> <li>No cause has been determined for this end of transmission.</li> <li>Multiple attempts to receive additional signals from the spacecraft failed through the end of 2022. No contact was made.</li> <li>The CuSP team fully investigated a sudden battery temperature increase and found it was a telemetry failure. This was verified by comparing redundant indications of several parameters. The redundant indications did not show the suspected excursion. This failure was proven to be the failure of a temperature monitor which saturated the ADC inputs of several signals, but not their redundant monitors fed to an independent ADC.</li> <li>The CuSP team fully investigated an anomalous high IRIS Radio temperature. JPL IRIS engineers traced it to a failure to update a scaling equation in the SMOC EGSE. Once the updated equation was applied, the temperature fell in line with all others.</li> <li>Plans were to make another attempt during an expected focal convergence, however, no further contact attempts were made to contact the spacecraft.</li> <li>Official end of mission was declared December 2023.</li></ul> <h2 id="gallery">Gallery</h2> <h2 id="other-artemis-1-cubesats">Other Artemis 1 CubeSats</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Near-Earth_Asteroid_Scout/zpGlUBJA">Near-Earth Asteroid Scout</a> by <a href="/facts/NASA/TIMCV0yV">NASA</a>, a <a href="/facts/Solar_sail/lmAFQ4AG">solar sail</a> spacecraft that was planned to encounter a <a href="/facts/Near-Earth_object/UwnPRnSN">near-Earth asteroid</a> (mission failure)</li> <li><a href="/facts/BioSentinel/Ha3JdvM0">BioSentinel</a>, an <a href="/facts/Astrobiology/GS1tFhrf">astrobiology</a> mission</li> <li><a href="/facts/LunIR/0b4mH9SV">LunIR</a> by <a href="/facts/Lockheed_Martin_Space/hqvv1eIY">Lockheed Martin Space</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Lunar_IceCube/K8JXNkVc">Lunar IceCube</a>, by the <a href="/facts/Morehead_State_University/l3qxdTh6">Morehead State University</a></li> <li>CubeSat for Solar Particles (CuSP)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Lunar_Polar_Hydrogen_Mapper/bVcTktxk">Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper</a> (LunaH-Map), designed by the <a href="/facts/Arizona_State_University/e4lLNfmP">Arizona State University</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/EQUULEUS/9PglqV0W">EQUULEUS</a>, submitted by <a href="/facts/JAXA/ofUpflgf">JAXA</a> and the <a href="/facts/University_of_Tokyo/Td0xnQDF">University of Tokyo</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/OMOTENASHI/S8QcQs13">OMOTENASHI</a>, submitted by JAXA, a lunar lander (mission failure)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Cislunar_Explorers/y09SxjwI">Cislunar Explorers</a>, <a href="/facts/Cornell_University/FGyXuXeI">Cornell University</a>, <a href="/facts/Ithaca,_New_York/mPyMCjEd">Ithaca, New York</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Earth_Escape_Explorer/7vWeFuw7">Earth Escape Explorer</a> (CU-E3), <a href="/facts/University_of_Colorado_Boulder/SzsmJFb7">University of Colorado Boulder</a></li></ul> <ul> <li>Spaceflight portal</li><li>Solar System portal</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"Heliophysics CubeSat to Launch on NASAs SLS". NASA. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Messier, Doug (5 February 2016). "SwRI CubeSat to Explore Deep Space". Parabolic ARC. Retrieved 9 March 2021. <a href="http://www.parabolicarc.com/2016/02/05/swri-cubesat-explore-deep-space/" target="_blank">http://www.parabolicarc.com/2016/02/05/swri-cubesat-explore-deep-space/</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"Heliophysics CubeSat to Launch on NASAs SLS". NASA. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Roulette, Joey; Gorman, Steve (16 November 2022). "NASA's next-generation Artemis mission heads to moon on debut test flight". Reuters. Retrieved 16 November 2022. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/nasas-artemis-moon-rocket-begins-fueling-debut-launch-2022-11-15/" target="_blank">https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/nasas-artemis-moon-rocket-begins-fueling-debut-launch-2022-11-15/</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Harbaugh, Jennifer (23 July 2021). "Artemis I CubeSats will study the Moon, solar radiation". NASA. Retrieved 22 October 2021. <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2021/07/23/artemis-i-cubesats-will-study-the-moon-solar-radiation/" target="_blank">https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2021/07/23/artemis-i-cubesats-will-study-the-moon-solar-radiation/</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>Interrante, Abbey (8 December 2022). "Artemis I Payload CuSP CubeSat Mission Update". NASA. Retrieved 26 May 2024. <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/sunspot/2022/12/08/artemis-i-payload-cusp-cubesat-mission-update/" target="_blank">https://blogs.nasa.gov/sunspot/2022/12/08/artemis-i-payload-cusp-cubesat-mission-update/</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"Heliophysics CubeSat to Launch on NASAs SLS". NASA. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"Heliophysics CubeSat to Launch on NASAs SLS". NASA. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>George, Don (21 April 2016). "The CuSP interplanetary CubeSat mission" (PDF). California Polytechnic State University. <a href="http://mstl.atl.calpoly.edu/~workshop/archive/2016/Spring/Day%202/Session%202/4_Don%20George.pdf" target="_blank">http://mstl.atl.calpoly.edu/~workshop/archive/2016/Spring/Day%202/Session%202/4_Don%20George.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>"Heliophysics CubeSat to Launch on NASAs SLS". NASA. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls" target="_blank">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/heliophysics-cubesat-to-launch-on-nasa-s-sls</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>Messier, Doug (5 February 2016). "SwRI CubeSat to Explore Deep Space". Parabolic ARC. Retrieved 9 March 2021. <a href="http://www.parabolicarc.com/2016/02/05/swri-cubesat-explore-deep-space/" target="_blank">http://www.parabolicarc.com/2016/02/05/swri-cubesat-explore-deep-space/</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>"CuSP Propulsion System". VACCO Industries. 11 August 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2022. <a href="https://cubesat-propulsion.com/cusp-propulsion-system/" target="_blank">https://cubesat-propulsion.com/cusp-propulsion-system/</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>George, Don (21 April 2016). "The CuSP interplanetary CubeSat mission" (PDF). California Polytechnic State University. <a href="http://mstl.atl.calpoly.edu/~workshop/archive/2016/Spring/Day%202/Session%202/4_Don%20George.pdf" target="_blank">http://mstl.atl.calpoly.edu/~workshop/archive/2016/Spring/Day%202/Session%202/4_Don%20George.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>