Category Archives: LunarCubes

Thursday / 31 July 2014

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SLS Maiden Voyage To Deliver Cubesats To Moon

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11 Cubesats Will Be Delivered To Cislunar Space On First Uncrewed Mission Of SLS Rocket / Orion Capsule In Late 2017; 3 Missions Have Already Been Selected Including Lunar Flashlight; Led By Barbara Cohen Of NASA Marshall SFC; Mission Will Utilize 80m² Solar Sail To Navigate Into A Highly Elliptical Lunar Polar Orbit That Passes Near Moon South Pole, Solar Sail Will Then Be Redirected To Shine 50kW Of Sunlight Into Shaded Craters While On-Board Spectrometer Measures Surface Reflection & Composition; Data Will Identify Sites With Ample Volatiles Near Surface Ideal For More Expansive Lander / Rover / Human Missions

Image Credit: NASA, Rob Staehle

Wednesday / 18 June 2014

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CubeSats To The Moon

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RFI Released By NASA To Gather Feedback / Gauge Interest In Deep Space CubeSat Centennial Challenge; 1st Challenge Will Award US$3M To Competitor Able To Meet Or Exceed Propulsion, Communication, Longevity Technical Objectives While In Lunar Orbit; 2nd Challenge Will Award Up To US$1.5M For CubeSat Demonstrations Beyond Lunar Orbit; Additional US$1M For Ground Qualification Competition Reviews; CubeSats Will Be Carried Into Trans-Lunar Trajectory On 1st Launch Of NASA SLS In 2018

Image Credit: NASA, pocketspacecraft.com

Tuesday / 11 February 2014

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4th International Workshop On Lunar Science Applications In Florida This April

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8-11 April Event In Cocoa Beach, FL, USA Will Provide Overview Of Current Lunar Mission Data, Planned USA, Russia, GLXP Missions & Opportunities They May Provide For Secondary Payloads To Lunar Surface / Cislunar Space; LSA 4 Designed To Foster Collaboration Among Scientists, Engineers & Entrepreneurs To Solve Challenges Involved With Going To Moon & Beyond; Abstracts Due 28 Feb

Image Credit: lunarinitiatives.com, NASA, Moon Express

Friday / 7 February 2014

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Centennial Challenges Announces 1st
Competition To Lunar Orbit & Beyond

Centennial Challenges 2014

Proposed 2014 Centennial Challenges For USA Teams Would Allow CubeSats To Launch Aboard NASA Flight, Potentially SLS EM-1 Flight Around Moon 17 Dec 2017; Prizes For 2 Challenges Awarded For Successful Ground Demonstration Of Communications & Propulsion Subsystems, Highest Data Volume Transmitted From
> 356,700 km, Transmission From Farthest Distance Beyond Moon, Achieving Lunar Orbit(s); Request For Information Due 31 Mar

Image Credit: NASA, Flexure Engineering

Thursday / 21 November 2013

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CubeSat Mission Preparing For Future Lunar Missions

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Vermont Technical College Has Launched Small Satellite Into Space To Test Navigation Components That Will Eventually Be Used To Send Satellites To Moon; ‘Lunar Lander CubeSat’ Was 1 Of 28 CubeSats Launched On ORS-3 Enabler Mission Via Minotaur-1 Rocket From NASA Wallops Island Virginia Flight Facility; CubeSat Will Remain In Space 3-5 Years; Pictured: Project Organizer / Vermont Tech Professor Carl Brandon 

Image Credit: Vermont Tech

Wednesday / 10 July 2013

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Solar Sail CubeSat Project Aiming For Moon

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Aerospace Research & Engineering Systems Institute, Inc Developing CubeSat Mission To Demonstrate Ability Of Solar Sail Spacecraft To Navigate Itself Into Lunar Trajectory & Insert Itself Into Lunar Orbit; 1000 Cubic Cm Craft Would Be First To Reach Lunar Orbit Under Its Own Power For Entire Journey; ‘Citizen Space Mission’ Seeking Crowdfunding To Build Craft For US$50,000, Solar Sail Via Government Grant; Launch Target Date End 2016

Image Credit: Lunarsail.com

Thursday / 28 February 2013

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Interplanetary Cubesat Missions Could Open Lunar Opportunities

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INSPIRE Mission Among 24 Small Satellites Selected By NASA To Fly As Auxiliary Payloads In 2014-2016; Dual 3U INSPIRE CubeSats Will Be 1st To Travel Beyond Earth Orbit, Demonstrating Functionality In Interplanetary Space; Relatively Affordable (~US$3M) Moon Missions By Universities & Private Organizations Likely To Follow; LunarCubes Missions Briefing 11 April 2013 At NASA KSC

Image Credit: NASA