Aerospace has been at the forefront of CubeSat technology and the miniaturization of satellites since before the CubeSat standard was established — flying the world’s first containerized satellite over 20 years ago. — The accelerating pace of space innovation has transformed what humans once thought possible about reaching orbit, the moon, and beyond. The proliferation of small satellites and their increasing popularity have been major catalysts for this revolution. Smallsats offer a number of significant advantages — enabling enormous flexibility and experimentation for…

We get a lot of questions about rockets. — In honor of Earth Day, we asked Marty Ross, Aerospace rocket emissions expert studying the effects of aerospace propulsion on the Earth’s atmosphere, about the climate impacts of rocket launches, and how the increased pace of launch might change those outcomes. There is a lot of information about the impact of airplane emissions on global warming. Do rocket emissions have a similar impact?

Space traffic coordination needs massive amounts of data analysis to operate safely and efficiently. — Traffic etiquette, once learned, can seem intuitive: a driver stops their car at a red light, understanding that cross-traffic will have a green light and the right-of-way. Coordinating these simple signals have enabled a vast transportation system that continuously accommodates over 275 million motor vehicles across the United States…

With a successful installation onboard the ISS, preparation for PIANO to begin capturing images from space is now underway. — Satellite imagery has become an essential tool for many technologies, such as weather nowcasting and forecasting, terrain mapping, disaster monitoring for fires, floods and storms, and space weather impacts. Most space-based cameras rely primarily on the sun or moon as their light source, however, which can present a challenge.

Cyber threats pose a significant and complex challenge due to the absence of warning, the speed of an attack by an adversary, the difficulty of attribution, and the complexities associated with carrying out a proportionate response. — ­­­­­­­Space systems face many well-known types of attack, including orbital, kinetic, and electronic warfare, but are also vulnerable to forms of cyber threat. Cyberattacks can occur across multiple segments — space, communications link, and ground — within a space system architecture and are often overlooked in wider discussions of cyber…

What would an overt war in space look like? Is a Star Wars-like dogfight merely fictional or the future of military engagement? — We asked Dr. Rebecca Reesman, Senior Project Engineer and author of the paper, The Physics of Space War, to answer our questions about what’s fact or fiction when it comes to space warfighting. Let’s talk about starcruisers. How realistic are popular sci-fi depictions of military space operations?

SpaceX’s Starlink constellation lost 40 satellites last week due to unanticipated effects of a geomagnetic storm. As we enter a new 11-year solar cycle, many of these constellations will experience previously untested conditions. We asked our space weather expert about what this will mean for future LEO constellations. — SpaceX’s Starlink provides high-speed, low-latency broadband internet across the globe using a fleet of satellites in Low Earth Orbit. More than 2,000 Starlink satellites have been launched by SpaceX as of January, 2022.

Space weather can affect any mission. A new sensor can help identify how radiation hazards can impact critical space systems. — Spacecraft in orbit are at risk of developing problems from exposure to space weather—ranging from surface and electronics degradation to temporary or permanent failure—compromising spacecraft capability and overall performance. While general interactions between space weather and spacecraft are understood, identifying the exact impact on hardware and operations can take days.

This new CubeSat could provide information about the high-altitude molecular oxygen density of the Earth’s atmosphere for more precise tracking of satellites on orbit. — Reliance on space-based capabilities to enable essential services including navigation, weather monitoring and communications, are fundamental to modern technology. With the number of signals and radio waves beaming back and forth from ground systems to satellites in space, it is essential to understand the influence of the Earth’s atmosphere to…