Around the start of the pandemic, middle and high school students began designing a cube that finally was launched into space Sunday. Beginning in mid-November, their satellite will tweet photos from space directly onto X, the social media platform.
David Copeland, an electrical engineer specializing in deep space communication, started SilverSat in 2014 to get students in the Downcounty area interested in space.
About 20 young people and their scientist mentors meet regularly on Saturdays. As soon as a participant graduates high school, another student joins the group. Together, they applied to NASA with their idea about creating a satellite that takes photos when activated by radio control by the students. Their CubeSat then tweets the photos itself.
The satellite is only 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters.
The rocket holding their CubeSat docked with the International Space Station Thursday morning.
Once set out in space in November, it will operate for two to six months, before burning up in space.
The CubeStat launched in the Northrop Grumman’s new Cygnus XL spacecraft. Along with their satellite, the spacecraft was filled with more than 11,000 pounds of research and supplies.
