NASA to launch world’s smallest satellite

The Cubes in Space international competition, backed by NASA, led an 18-year-old Indian to create what is perhaps the smallest satellite in the world.

To test the durability of the satellite created using a 3D printer, NASA will ship it on a space mission next month.

A small cubic structure in carbon fiber, printed through a 3D printer and just 64g will be part of NASA’s next space mission, in a durability test.

This structure is a satellite developed from scratch by an 18-year-old in the Cube in Space competition. According to Rifath Shaarook, its creator, this satellite will have a new type of on-board computer and eight built-in sensors to measure the Earth’s acceleration, spin and magnetosphere.

We designed it completely from scratch. It will have a new kind of on-board computer and eight indigenous built-in sensors to measure acceleration, rotation and the magnetosphere of the earth.

The Space Mission

The satellite, KalamSat, will be sent into space on a suborbital mission of just 4 hours on June 21 from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The round trip of the satellite will have a 12-minute operation in a microgravity environment.

Scientist Rifath comes from a small town in Tamil Nadu, India, and now works as lead scientist at Space Kidz India, an organization that promotes science and education for Indian children and adolescents.