Australia took another small step into space on Sunday with the launch of a satellite “the size of a large loaf of non-artisan bread from the supermarket” designed by scientists and students from Sydney’s universities.
Professor Cairns said the small satellite weighed considerably more than supermarket-bought bread and had a set of black shiny solar cell panels and few white panels with “eyes” , a small gray metal plate , and four tape-wire antennas that radiate from the top. The satellite is the lead project of the Australian Research Council Training Centre for CubeSats, Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles and their Applications led by Professor Cairns.
CUAVA-1 is being sent to the International Space Station for deployment into orbit about 400 kilometres above Earth, which is scheduled for later this year.It will carry four experimental payloads – designed and built in Sydney – during its 12-month mission in near-Earth orbit that will investigate Earth’s plasma environment and space weather using onboard radiation detectors, observe Earth using novel imaging technology and forge links with the international amateur radio union.