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SPACE STUDIES BOARD WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD Achieving Science with CubeSats: Thinking Inside the Box Robyn Millan and the Committee on Achieving Science Goals with Cubesats Committee Chair: Thomas H. Zurbuchen, University of

SLIDE 1

WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD

Achieving Science with CubeSats: Thinking Inside the Box

SPACE STUDIES BOARD

Committee Chair: Thomas H. Zurbuchen, University of Michigan Vice Chair: Bhavya Lal, IDA Science and Technology Policy Institute Study Director: Abigail Sheffer, Program Officer, SSB Robyn Millan and the Committee on Achieving Science Goals with Cubesats

SLIDE 2

Committee Membership

Julie Castillo-Rogez, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech Andrew Clegg, Google, Inc. Bhavya Lal, (Vice Chair), IDA Science and Technology Policy Institute Paulo Lozano, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Malcolm Macdonald, University of Strathclyde Robyn Millan, Dartmouth College Charles D. Norton, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech William H. Swartz, Johns Hopkins University, Applied Physics Lab Alan M. Title, Lockheed Martin Space Technology Advanced R&D Labs Thomas N. Woods, University of Colorado Boulder Edward L. Wright, University of California, Los Angeles

A. Thomas Young, Lockheed Martin Corporation [Retired]

Thomas H. Zurbuchen (Chair), University of Michigan

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats 2

SLIDE 3

Can CubeSats support high priority science objectives?

Key Elements of Charge to Committee

Develop a summary of status, capability, availability, and accomplishments in the government, academic, and industrial sectors

Recommend potential near-term investments that could be made to improve the capabilities and usefulness of CubeSats for scientific return and to enable the science communities’ use of CubeSats Identify a set of sample priority science goals that describe near-term science opportunities

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

SLIDE 4

What is a CubeSat?

§ A ¡spacecra) ¡sized ¡in ¡units, ¡or ¡U’s, ¡typically ¡up ¡to ¡12 ¡U ¡ that ¡is ¡launched ¡fully ¡enclosed ¡in ¡a ¡container ¡

¡ (a ¡unit ¡is ¡defined ¡as ¡a ¡volume ¡of ¡about ¡10 ¡cm ¡× ¡10 ¡cm ¡× ¡10 ¡cm) ¡

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats 4

SLIDE 5

CubeSat launches have skyrocketed in recent years …

0 ¡ 20 ¡ 40 ¡ 60 ¡ 80 ¡ 100 ¡ 120 ¡ 140 ¡ 2000 ¡ 2001 ¡ 2002 ¡ 2003 ¡ 2005 ¡ 2006 ¡ 2007 ¡ 2008 ¡ 2009 ¡ 2010 ¡ 2011 ¡ 2012 ¡ 2013 ¡ 2014 ¡ 2015 ¡

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

N = 425 2001-2015

SLIDE 6

…lately dominated by commercial entities

0 ¡ 20 ¡ 40 ¡ 60 ¡ 80 ¡ 100 ¡ 120 ¡ 140 ¡ 2000 ¡ 2001 ¡ 2002 ¡ 2003 ¡ 2005 ¡ 2006 ¡ 2007 ¡ 2008 ¡ 2009 ¡ 2010 ¡ 2011 ¡ 2012 ¡ 2013 ¡ 2014 ¡ 2015 ¡ Other ¡Civilian ¡Government ¡(15) ¡ Commercial ¡(177) ¡ Military ¡(55) ¡ nasa ¡(34) ¡ nsf ¡(13) ¡ University ¡(131) ¡

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

N = 425 2001-2015

SLIDE 7

36 Countries have Launched CubeSats – United States Dominates N=425

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

SLIDE 8

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

NASA/NSF CubeSats: >100 launched or about to be launched (72 missions)

SLIDE 9

Science Impact and Potential

} Scientific contributions and potential of CubeSats

in the context of the Decadal Surveys

} Review of publications to assess impact } Unique role of CubeSats in each science discipline

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

SLIDE 10

25% of the papers (160 of 536) in refereed journals
75% of refereed papers in engineering disciplines

N = 536 2000-2015

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

CubeSat-based Science already Underway

SLIDE 11

Solar and Space Physics

} CubeSats have already proven their scientific value

} Majority of refereed science publications are in space physics } largely driven by the NSF CubeSat program

} DRIVE initiative

} CubeSats “diversify” by providing stand-alone, unique measurements

and measurements that augment larger facilities; “venture forward” by driving technology development; and “educate”.

N = 41 2000-2015

SLIDE 12

Solar and Space Physics Opportunities

} Augmenting larger facilities

} CSSWE works with

Van Allen

} RAX works with PFSIR

} New kinds of measurements

} Hazardous orbits not

accessible to traditional large

bservatories to probe the

atmospheric boundary region

} Filling a niche or gap (MinXSS) } Multipoint measurements to

understand coupled Sun-Earth system

} Technology development

} Demonstration of spacecraft

and instrument innovations

“Instrumenting Space” through Distributed Architectures Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

} Investment required in

pointing, high rate communication, sensor technology, and propulsion

SLIDE 13

Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) Not CubeSats, but CubeSat-enabled!

Example: Constellations/Swarms

…NASA should develop the capability to implement large-scale constellation missions taking advantage of CubeSats or CubeSat- derived technology and a philosophy of evolutionary development.

SLIDE 14

§ Conclusion: CubeSats have already produced high-value

science, as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals.

§ Conclusion: Although all science disciplines benefit from

innovative CubeSat missions, CubeSats cannot address all science objectives and are not a low-cost substitute for all

platforms. Some activities such as those needing large

apertures, high power instruments, or very high precision pointing most likely will always require larger platforms because of fundamental and practical constraints of small spacecraft.

§ CubeSats are a specific tool in the suite of options for

conducting science.

What CubeSats Enable

SLIDE 15

Report Makes 8 Recommendations

} Future of the NSF and NASA programs } Use of CubeSats as training tools } Constellations, technology development,

and leveraging private sector capabilities

} Recommendations and best practices

regarding policy challenges

For full details, see www.nap.edu/cubesats

SLIDE 16

CubeSats as targeted

investigations

augment the capabilities of

large missions and ground- based facilities.

enable new kinds of

measurements (e.g. distributed, low altitude)

enable technologies that

WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD

Achieving Science with CubeSats: Thinking Inside the Box

SPACE STUDIES BOARD

Committee Chair: Thomas H. Zurbuchen, University of Michigan Vice Chair: Bhavya Lal, IDA Science and Technology Policy Institute Study Director: Abigail Sheffer, Program Officer, SSB Robyn Millan and the Committee on Achieving Science Goals with Cubesats

Committee Membership

Thomas H. Zurbuchen (Chair), University of Michigan

Can CubeSats support high priority science objectives?

Key Elements of Charge to Committee

Develop a summary of status, capability, availability, and accomplishments in the government, academic, and industrial sectors

Recommend potential near-term investments that could be made to improve the capabilities and usefulness of CubeSats for scientific return and to enable the science communities’ use of CubeSats Identify a set of sample priority science goals that describe near-term science opportunities

What is a CubeSat?

§ A ¡spacecra) ¡sized ¡in ¡units, ¡or ¡U’s, ¡typically ¡up ¡to ¡12 ¡U ¡ that ¡is ¡launched ¡fully ¡enclosed ¡in ¡a ¡container ¡

¡ (a ¡unit ¡is ¡defined ¡as ¡a ¡volume ¡of ¡about ¡10 ¡cm ¡× ¡10 ¡cm ¡× ¡10 ¡cm) ¡

CubeSat launches have skyrocketed in recent years …

N = 425 2001-2015

…lately dominated by commercial entities

N = 425 2001-2015

36 Countries have Launched CubeSats – United States Dominates N=425

NASA/NSF CubeSats: >100 launched or about to be launched (72 missions)

Science Impact and Potential

} Scientific contributions and potential of CubeSats

in the context of the Decadal Surveys

} Review of publications to assess impact } Unique role of CubeSats in each science discipline

N = 536 2000-2015

CubeSat-based Science already Underway

Solar and Space Physics

} CubeSats have already proven their scientific value

} Majority of refereed science publications are in space physics } largely driven by the NSF CubeSat program

} DRIVE initiative

} CubeSats “diversify” by providing stand-alone, unique measurements

and measurements that augment larger facilities; “venture forward” by driving technology development; and “educate”.

N = 41 2000-2015

Solar and Space Physics Opportunities

Van Allen

accessible to traditional large

atmospheric boundary region

understand coupled Sun-Earth system

and instrument innovations

pointing, high rate communication, sensor technology, and propulsion

Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) Not CubeSats, but CubeSat-enabled!

Example: Constellations/Swarms

…NASA should develop the capability to implement large-scale constellation missions taking advantage of CubeSats or CubeSat- derived technology and a philosophy of evolutionary development.

§ Conclusion: CubeSats have already produced high-value

science, as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals.

innovative CubeSat missions, CubeSats cannot address all science objectives and are not a low-cost substitute for all

apertures, high power instruments, or very high precision pointing most likely will always require larger platforms because of fundamental and practical constraints of small spacecraft.

conducting science.

What CubeSats Enable

Report Makes 8 Recommendations

} Future of the NSF and NASA programs } Use of CubeSats as training tools } Constellations, technology development,

and leveraging private sector capabilities

} Recommendations and best practices

regarding policy challenges

For full details, see www.nap.edu/cubesats

investigations

large missions and ground- based facilities.

measurements (e.g. distributed, low altitude)

benefit larger missions

Download full report at: www.nap.edu/cubesats

CubeSats are a specific tool in the suite of options for conducting science.

Summary: High Value Science