HawkSat-1 was a single-unit
CubeSat
A CubeSat is a class of small satellite with a form factor of cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than per unit,, url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5418c831e4b0fa4ecac1bacd/t/5f24997b6deea10cc52bb016/1596234122437/CDS+REV14+2020-07-3 ...
which was built and is being operated by the Hawk Institute for Space Sciences (HISS),
Pocomoke City, Maryland
Pocomoke City, dubbed "the friendliest town on the Eastern Shore", is a city in Worcester County, Maryland, Worcester County, Maryland, United States. Although renamed in a burst of civic enthusiasm in 1878, the city is regularly referred to by i ...
. It is based on a Pumpkin Inc. CubeSat kit, and carries a
technology demonstration
A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of show ...
payload, primarily as a
proof of concept
A proof of concept (POC or PoC), also known as proof of principle, is an inchoate realization of a certain idea or method in order to demonstrate its feasibility or viability. A proof of concept is usually small and may or may not be complete ...
mission, testing command, data and power subsystems, as well as
solar panel
A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...
s and
communications
Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...
.
It carries a commercial material exposure research payload for an undisclosed "major aerospace company",
[ ] which exposes a number of material samples to space, and records the effects of exposure on the materials. The data was to be sent to
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
by means of a storage and dump communication system.
Launch
It was successfully launched on an
Orbital Sciences Corporation
Orbital Sciences Corporation (commonly referred to as Orbital) was an American company specializing in the design, manufacture, and launch of small- and medium- class space and launch vehicle systems for commercial, military and other governmen ...
Minotaur I
The Minotaur I, or just Minotaur is an American expendable launch system derived from the LGM-30 Minuteman, Minuteman II missile. It is used to launch Small satellite, small satellites for the Us government, US Government, and is a member of the M ...
launch vehicle
A launch vehicle is typically a rocket-powered vehicle designed to carry a payload (a crewed spacecraft or satellites) from Earth's surface or lower atmosphere to outer space. The most common form is the ballistic missile-shaped multistage ...
from
Pad 0B at the
Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) is a commercial space launch facility located at the southern tip of NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island in Virginia, just east of the Delmarva Peninsula and south of Chincoteague, Vi ...
, at 23:55
UTC
Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...
on 19 May 2009. It was a tertiary payload, with
TacSat-3 as the primary payload and
PharmaSat as the secondary. Two other CubeSats,
AeroCube-3 and
CP6, were launched on the same launch vehicle, and together the three satellites are known as the CubeSat Technology Demonstration mission.
Mission
The satellite was successfully deployed in orbit, but no signals were received.
Atmospheric entry
The satellite
reentered in the
atmosphere of Earth
The atmosphere of Earth is composed of a layer of gas mixture that surrounds the Earth's planetary surface (both lands and oceans), known collectively as air, with variable quantities of suspended aerosols and particulates (which create weather ...
on 4 September 2011.
[ ]
See also
*
List of CubeSats
The following is a list of CubeSats, nanosatellites used primarily by universities for research missions, typically in low Earth orbits. Some CubeSats became Timeline of first satellites by country, their country's first national satellite. The ex ...
References
External links
*
* http://www.hawkspace.org/history.php Hawk Institute for Space Sciences - history
Spacecraft launched in 2009
CubeSats
Spacecraft launched by Minotaur rockets
Spacecraft which reentered in 2011
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