ROBUSTA (Radiation on Bipolar for University Satellite Test Application) is a nano-satellite scientific experiment developed by the

University of Montpellier The University of Montpellier (french: Université de Montpellier) is a public research university located in Montpellier, in south-east of France. Established in 1220, the University of Montpellier is one of the oldest universities in the wor ...

students as part of a

Centre National d'Études Spatiales The (CNES; French: ''Centre national d'études spatiales'') is the French government space agency (administratively, a "public administration with industrial and commercial purpose"). Its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is und ...

(CNES) call for student projects in the field of orbital systems. The satellite is a

Cubesat A CubeSat is a class of miniaturized satellite based around a form factor consisting of cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than per unit, and often use commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for their electronics and structure. CubeSats ...

, the name given to a series of nano-satellites developed as part of student projects. The ROBUSTA mission is to check the deterioration of electronic components, based on bipolar transistors, when exposed to in-flight space radiation. The results of the experiment will be used to validate a new radiation test method proposed by the laboratory.

Implementation of the project

The duration of the ROBUSTA project is 6 years, beginning in 2006. The satellite was launched on February 13, 2012 on the

Vega Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, a ...

rocket's maiden flight, and reentered in the atmosphere in February 2015. An anomaly within the battery recharge system resulted in the loss of the satellite after a few days.

Staff

Teams from several sites, coordinated by the Centre Spatial Universitaire Montpellier-Nîmes worked together. These teams are spread over several sites: * The mechanical design was done by the IUT GMP of Nîmes; *

Energy management Energy management includes planning and operation of energy production and energy consumption units as well as energy distribution and storage. Objectives are resource conservation, climate protection and cost savings, while the users have per ...

was conducted by IUT GEII of Nîmes; * The

ground segment A ground segment consists of all the ground-based elements of a space system used by operators and support personnel, as opposed to the space segment and user segment. The ground segment enables management of a spacecraft, and distribution of pay ...

and communication cards are supported by the IUP PGII Montpellier. * The controller card was done by Polytech Montpellier and IUT GEII Montpellier. * The payload is managed by the EEA department of the University of Montpellier.

References

Student satellites CubeSats Spacecraft launched in 2012 University of Montpellier Spacecraft launched by Vega rockets Satellites of France 2012 in France {{France-spacecraft-stub