Robusta-3A is a 30 cm CubeSat from the University Space Center of Montpellier in France. It will gather reflected signals from navigation satellites such as from Europe’s Galileo constellation that are bounced off water in the air. The data gathered by Robusta-3A from space is compared to data collected from navigation receivers on ships in the Mediterranean Sea, and the differences between the two will allow researchers at Météo-France to form a better understanding of the process behind how water vapour forms flash floods.
Over a decade in development, involving around 300 students from the University of Montpellier and all over the world, Robusta-3A will be its seventh satellite developed entirely in-house, having learnt much from the development and launch of smaller Robusta-1U satellites. The project has offered hands-on training, engineering and scientific experience to the next generation of space engineers and researchers.
The meteorological payload for Robusta-3A was developed in collaboration with France’s meteorological service Météo-France, France’s geographical society IGN, French engineering school and research institute Ensta Bretagne and the port of Sète. Two research labs helped develop the radiation testing payload, Laboratoire d’Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier and the Institut d'Electronique et des Systèmes.