REALOP Spacecraft

Provide data from a variety of environmental and remote sensors for students and test HDDs as reaction wheels.

Provide continuous data from a variety of environmental and remote sensors while downlinking this data to a ground-based server that can students can access through online API and independently investigate various phenomena that are unique to Low-Earth Orbit. Carrying a radFET-based dosimeter payload.

Aims to prove the use of HDDs as reaction wheels by raising their status to TRL 9.

The primary educational goal of the mission is to demonstrate the use of common hard disk drives (HDDs) as functional CubeSat reaction wheels. This will require telemetry from HDD reaction wheel tests to be transmitted to Earth. Additionally, we will be establishing a ground station based at UC Davis to receive from the satellite. This mission is only for educational and research purposes.

The mission purpose is to enable research and contribute to the body of knowledge in the field of small satellite engineering, as well as contribute to the amateur satellite community (after experiment completion, the satellite will be placed under control of AMSAT, and even during experimentation we will aim to keep the transponder on at all times). Students will be given the opportunity to get hands-on experience communicating with the satellite using radio signals once it is in orbit, as well as be exposed to the larger world of amateur radio by becoming licensed to do so. Additionally, our payload seeks to reduce the financial barrier of entry to CubeSat development.

Used to be two identical 1U CubeSats, but all official online references show solid 2U.