Student CubeSat successfully launched
ESA Education’s first student CubeSat destined to be deployed from the International Space Station was successfully launched today from Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. At 11:50.49 GMT, JAXA’s HTV-5 “Kontouri 5”spacecraft left Earth carrying the AAUSAT5 CubeSat, built by a student team from Aalborg University in Denmark, with ESA’s support.
AAUSAT5 was selected as a pilot project of ESA’s ‘Fly Your Satellite from the ISS!’ education programme. The student team from Aalborg University designed, built, and tested the satellite, with technical and financial support from ESA, and will operate AAUSAT5 throughout its mission.
A few weeks after arrival, at a date to be confirmed, AAUSAT5 will be deployed into low Earth orbit and will begin a technical mission to test its improved Automated Identification System; a system designed to track and identify ships transiting away from coastal areas and in remote areas, thereby creating potential for safer use of new shipping lanes.
Inside the same dispenser POD as AAUSAT5 is GomX-3, a 3-unit CubeSat built by a professional company, that will test miniaturised technologies for space. In addition to AAUSAT5 and GomX-3, HTV-5 is carrying 5.7 tons of cargo, including crew supplies, food, water, science experiments, and satellites to the ISS. The rendezvous and capture of HTV-5 is scheduled for Monday, August 24th at 10:55 GMT and can be accessed here.
