Otter Spacecraft

Communications payloads including line-of-sight communications using two banks of LEDs.

A National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) research & development demonstrator, in partnership with the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) and New Zealand Defence Force’s (NZDF) Defence Science & Technology (DST).

The Otter spacecraft is an international collaboration hosting three payloads. The primary payload called Tui is a NZDF payload built by DST in Auckland, New Zealand. Tui will characterize and validate space-based communication network performance. Two secondary payloads built by NPS will help develop and evaluate communication technologies and concepts of operations on future CubeSat missions.

Also noteworthy and evidence of the unique relationship SEOPS has forged with fellow launch integrator Maverick Space, the Otter spacecraft utilized Maverick’s NLAS deployer. The Otter payload was integrated into Maverick’s 6U ruggedized dispenser by Maverick personnel at NPS in Monterey, California, and then the containerized spacecraft was transported to SpaceX’s payload integration facility where SEOPS and Maverick integrated it to the launch vehicle.

Otter with have 1550 nm optical comms package.

The Otter CubeSat will fly New Zealand DST’s second communications payload, Tui, a risk reduction effort for space-based maritime domain awareness capabilities. Two NPS-built payloads are also manifested on Otter – an X-band transmitter and the next iteration of LOOP to continue experimenting with line-of-sight communications by using two banks of LEDs, transmitting in green and near-infrared wavelengths, that are capable of modulating light for basic messaging. More than 20 NPS students will have directly contributed to the Mola and Otter CubeSats in the FVEY series.

• AE1C
• AE1D
• ALainSat-1
• ANSER Leader-S
• Balkan-1
• BRO-16
• BUZZER-1
• Centauri-7
• Centauri-8
• Connecta IoT 5
• Connecta IoT 6
• Connecta IoT 7
• Connecta IoT 8
• Flock-4g 1
• Flock-4g 2
• Flock-4g 3
• Flock-4g 4
• Flock-4g 5
• Flock-4g 6
• Flock-4g 7
• Flock-4g 8
• Flock-4g 9
• Flock-4g 10
• Flock-4g 11
• Flock-4g 12
• Flock-4g 13
• Flock-4g 14
• Flock-4g 15
• Flock-4g 16
• Flock-4g 17
• Flock-4g 18
• Flock-4g 19
• Flock-4g 20
• Flock-4g 21
• Flock-4g 22
• Flock-4g 23
• Flock-4g 24
• Flock-4g 25
• Flock-4g 26
• Flock-4g 27
• Flock-4g 28
• Flock-4g 29
• Flock-4g 30
• Flock-4g 31
• Flock-4g 32
• Flock-4g 33
• Flock-4g 34
• Flock-4g 35
• Flock-4g 36
• Edison
• Elevation-1
• FOREST-3
• FOSSASat TAT-A
• FOSSASat TAT-E
• FUSION-1
• GEN1
• HCT-SAT 1
• InnoCube
• IRIS-F2
• IRIS-F3
• Lemur-2 197
• Lemur-2 198
• Lemur-2 199
• Lemur-2 200
• Lemur-2 201
• Lemur-2 202
• LIME
• Otter
• Parus-T1
• PAUSAT1
• SAT GUS
• SATurnin-1
• SCOT
• TechEdSat-22
• TROLL
• VEERY-0F
• LOGSATS 2
• LusoSpace 0
• Sedna 2
• HADES-R
• Hello Space 2
• Hello Space 3
• HYDRA-2
• HYPE
• POQUITO
• PROMETHEUS-1
• BlueBon
• FOSSASat TAT-O