Six Space Proven PocketQube Mission Ideas

inspiration for your first satellite project

PocketQube satellites are a new and exciting development in the world of space exploration. These tiny spacecraft, measuring just 5 cm on each side, offer an affordable and accessible way for smaller organizations, universities, and individuals to conduct their own space missions without a NASA sized Budget.

With their compact size and low cost, PocketQubes can be launched for as little as 25K Euro and are well suited for a variety of missions. Here are a few examples of the types of missions you could fly using PocketQubes, drawing inspiration from missions that have flown in the past as well as some new and upcoming missions: 

1. Education and STEM Outreach:

PocketQubes can be used to engage students and the general public in the exciting world of space exploration with hands on learning!  For example, schools and universities could use PocketQubes to conduct in-orbit experiments or to teach students about space engineering, electronics, programming, scientific investigation and team collaboration.

Alba Orbital has launched a number of educational projects on behalf of academic institutions including TU Delft, Stanford University, and Carnegie Mellon University. As PocketQubes are smaller, less expensive, and faster to develop than traditional satellites, this makes space more accessible for universities, non-profit organizations and even high schools!

Education case study: International Computing High School of Bucharest 

ROM-Space is a group of high school students (aged 15 to 18) from the International Computing High School of Bucharest launching Romania’s very first PocketQube and the country’s second ever satellite. 

ROM-2 (Romanian Orbital Mission 2) is a 1p satellite that will be joining us on our next SpaceX mission in 2023. The satellite carries an earth observation payload to deliver satellite imagery of the earth through radio amateur frequencies.

As some of the youngest ever satellite builders, ROM-Space set out to prove that even high school students can design, build and launch their own spacecraft to orbit. They hope to inspire students to pursue careers in STEM fields by giving them a concrete example of the exciting and cutting-edge work that is possible in these fields. The impressive young team are already planning their next missions for a future constellation of spacecraft! 

From our experience, educational PocketQube missions tend to be the first step towards bigger space ambitions as many of the students tend to form their own start-ups (as seen with Hello Space and Innova Space) after hosting their first missions, or they continue to develop more complex satellite missions for deeper research, like Budapest University of Technology and Economics’ ‘SMOG constellation’ project.

PocketQubes offer a valuable tool for education and STEM outreach, providing students with hands-on learning opportunities, inspiration, and access to real-world scientific data. By engaging students in these exciting and cutting-edge projects, PocketQubes have the potential to help cultivate a new generation of STEM professionals and encourage the next generation of space explorers.

2 Earth Observation:

PocketQubes can be equipped with cameras and other sensors to capture images of the Earth's surface. This data can be used for a variety of applications, such as monitoring natural disasters, tracking deforestation, or monitoring agricultural assets.

As PocketQubes can be built and launched at much lower cost compared to traditional satellites, this allows smaller organisations to focus on niche’s in the EO data market that are currently underserved by bigger players in the industry. A great example of this is Alba Orbital’s ‘Night Lights’ pico-satellite constellation: 

Earth Observation Case Study I: Alba Orbital’s ‘Night Lights’ Unicorns 

Night time satellite imagery (or ‘Night Lights Data’) can be used to study light emissions from the earth during the night. Remote sensing of nighttime light emissions offers a unique dataset for researchers investigating disaster impacts & recovery, biological impacts of light pollution, and insights into national socio-economics (just to name a few use cases). 

However, the only way to currently access night lights data is to either use outdated weather satellites with resolutions as poor as 750/m or to ask an astronaut on the ISS to snap a pic in orbit (pricey and quite inaccessible).

With their night lights constellation of 3p PocketQubes ‘Unicorns’, Alba Orbital will provide reliable night time satellite imagery of around 20/m with significantly higher revisit rates than other options on the market. Alba Orbital raised a $3.4m seed round via Y Combinator to expand on their imaging constellation, with investors from Skype and FitBit backing the vision of PocketQubes for Earth Observation. 

Earth Observation Case Study II: ACME MyRadar’s Weather PocketQubes

In May 2022, Alba Orbital successfully launched Myradar-1, TRSI-2 and TRSI-3 on board Rocket Lab’s historic ‘There and Back Again’ on behalf of rideshare client ACME AtronOmatic. Less than a month after the launch, the team behind the popular weather app (MyRadar), announced successful downlink of imagery from orbit. 

These pico-satellites served as an excellent in-orbit technology demonstration for ACME’s upcoming ‘HORIS’ constellation of up to 250 satellites.

The Hyperspectral Orbital Remote Imaging Spectrometer constellation intends to capture environmental data to be paired with artificial intelligence and machine learning to provide data fusion products for ACME’s government, federal and commercial customers. Some use cases of the HORIS dataset include monitoring extreme weather, illegal fishing, wildfires and national security.

3. Technology Demonstration

PocketQubes lend themselves to being excellent platforms for in-orbit technology demonstrations. As they are much smaller, less expensive, and faster to develop than traditional satellites, they inherently present a much lower risk profile to demonstrate novel concepts. 

Take for instance, launching a 1U Cubesat to demonstrate a new concept in orbit - this would typically cost around 100,000 Euro in launch costs alone. Meaning a lot of capital and a lot more work is invested in taking a bet on your technology working in-orbit on the first go (which can be a hard task). Whereas, with a 1p PocketQube your launch costs are quartered meaning you can either experiment on a much less costly scale, or choose to send multiple missions and improve on your in-space prototypes using rapid iterative design cycles with the lessons you learned from orbit. 

Technology Demonstration Case Study I: ATL-1

A great example of this type of mission is ATL-1, a 2p PocketQube flown by Rocket Lab & Alba Orbital in December 2019. Developed by ATL Ltd., and the Budapest University of Technology & Economics (BME), ATL-1’s primary mission objectives were to a) conduct thermal insulation experiments to test on ATL’s new thermal materials in space while (b) collecting DVB-T Band spectrum data as part of BME’s ‘Electrosmog’ research project. 

Demonstration of technology can be that of PocketQube-sized subsystems or components itself, but it can also be performed for technology which is meant for larger platforms. These technology demonstrations can help to advance the state of the art space tech and enable new capabilities for future space missions, such as advanced communications systems, propulsion systems, or control algorithms. 

4. Internet of Things (IoT) constellations

PocketQube constellations dedicated to providing global IoT services appears to be one of the most popular use cases of PocketQubes so far! As PocketQubes are relatively low cost compared to larger satellites, their cost-effective scalability make them ideal for IoT constellations that require a large number of satellites to cover remote regions that are left without communication coverage or mobile networks.

IoT constellations can be applied to a range of industry solutions from Agricultural and Environmental monitoring, to Maritime surveillance, asset tracking and Disaster response. 

There’s already a number of companies leveraging PocketQube constellations to provide IoT services from orbit. Two fantastic start-ups we had the pleasure of working with on our recent launch campaigns are Hello Space from Turkey, and Hydra Space Systems from Spain! 

5. RF Spectrum Monitoring / RF Sensing missions

There’s a range of applications you could carry out with an RF sensing/monitoring PocketQube mission. Our original concept for the 2p Unicorn-1 satellite was to take an ADS-B payload (commercially available from SkyFox Labs) and include a high gain stubbed helix antenna for the purpose of plane tracking! 

You could also launch PocketQubes with AIS payloads for the purpose of ship tracking. AIS is slightly trickier than ADS-B as the required wavelength is much longer at 162 Mhz (vs 1090Mhz for ADSB), however not impossible with a bigger antenna. 

Of course, we can’t talk about RF Spectrum monitoring PocketQubes, without looking at the work of BME University’s SMOG project! 

RF Spectrum Monitoring Case Study: BME University’s SMOG satellites

When BME’s SMOG project development started in 2013, other groups launched an initial wave of PocketQube satellites, however these were the first PocketQubes dedicated to monitoring electromagnetic pollution from earth. Otherwise known as ‘Electrosmog’, this cacophony can interfere with communications across devices, prompting large companies to develop more and more powerful technologies that, in turn, consume greater amounts of energy.

On December 6, 2019, SMOG-P & ATL-1 hitched a ride into space and entered low earth orbit with Alba Orbital on board Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle. During its mission, the pocket-sized satellite scanned the entire Earth’s surface twice daily, collecting and transmitting enough spectrum monitor subsystem data for researchers to produce a global electrosmog map within weeks. In addition to the DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcasting-Television) spectrum monitoring payload, SMOG-P also featured a minuscule onboard radiation dosimeter measuring how much radiation hit the electronics during orbit, allowing the team to check for excess exposure.

The SMOG project subsequently developed a similar PocketQube satellite, SMOG-1, which was launched on March 22, 2021 and they’re now preparing their 4th PocketQube for launch, MRC-100.  Named in honour of the university’s radio club (Műegyetemi Rádió Club) 100th anniversary in 2024, the MRC-100 satellite is expected to launch with Alba Orbital and SpaceX in 2023 and is a continuation of the university’s SMOG project. 

6. Amateur Radio

Another popular PocketQube mission you could fly is an Amateur Radio mission! PocketQubes can be used by amateur radio operators to provide a new platform for communication and experimentation. These missions are often flown to help expand the community of amateur radio enthusiasts and increase public engagement in the practice.

Building and launching a PocketQube satellite provides amateur radio enthusiasts with an opportunity to learn about space technology, electronics, and other related fields, which can be an exciting and educational experience.

PocketQubes are typically low cost platforms equipped with UHF/VHF amateur radio transceivers, which makes it easier for amateur radio enthusiasts to communicate with the satellite and receive telemetry data.

Amateur Radio Case Study: $50Sat

$50Sat, also known as EAGLE-2, is an open-source PocketQube satellite project that was designed to demonstrate the feasibility of building and launching a functional satellite for just $50. The project was launched in 2013 with the goal of providing a simple and low-cost platform for educational and amateur space missions.

$50Sat is equipped with a basic communications system, including a UHF/VHF transceiver, a microcontroller, and a simple power system. The satellite is based on a modular design, which makes it easy to modify and customize for different missions.

One of the key innovations of $50Sat is its use of off-the-shelf components, such as a cellphone battery and a Bluetooth module, which helps to keep costs low. The satellite also leverages a number of open-source hardware and software tools, which makes it easy for others to build their own satellites based on the $50Sat design.

Since its launch, the $50Sat project has inspired many other similar projects, and has helped to demonstrate the potential of PocketQube satellites for low-cost space missions. Today, the project remains as an inspiration for an active and vibrant community of amateur radio enthusiasts, space enthusiasts, and educators who are working together to push the boundaries of what is possible with small satellites.

Feeling Inspired?

As shown above, PocketQubes offer a wide range of possibilities for new and exciting missions in space. Whether it's for Earth observation, technology demonstration, education, or any other application, PocketQubes provide a unique, low-cost and accessible platform for space exploration!

If you’re feeling inspired by this post and would like to embark on your first satellite mission, why wait? Contact us today and take your first step toward realizing your space dreams! Our team of experts will help you every step of the way, from planning and preparation to launch and operation. We can't wait to see what you'll accomplish 🚀