Virginia CubeSat Constellation Satellites to Carry Amateur Packet Payloads

A three-satellite constellation of CubeSats developed by university students across Virginia has moved a step closer to orbit and the culmination of a multi-year effort. The Virginia CubeSat Constellation is a collaborative project of the Virginia Space Grant Consortium and its four member universities — the University of Virginia (UVA), Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University, and Hampton University. Three CubeSats — developed by engineering students and named after Roman deities — were delivered to Houston aerospace company NanoRacks for integration into a launch vehicle headed for the International Space Station (ISS). Each satellite will carry a UHF Amateur Radio packet repeater, but their primary mission is to quantify atmospheric density. Launch is set for April 17 from NASA’s Wallop’s Island facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on Northrop Grumman’s Antares vehicle, and the CubeSats will be deployed into orbit by ISS crew members. More

(Source: ARRL - Mar 16)