Astronomy:Team Miles

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Short description: US experimental communications and plasma propulsion spacecraft


Team Miles
Mission typeTechnology demonstration
Websiteteam.miles-space.com
Mission duration1 year, 7 months and 27 days (in orbit)
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftTeam Miles
Spacecraft typeCubeSat
Bus6U CubeSat
ManufacturerFluid and Reason, LLC.
Launch mass14 kg (31 lb)
Dimensions10 cm × 20 cm × 30 cm
Start of mission
Launch date16 November 2022, 06:47:44 UTC[1]
RocketSLS Block 1
Launch siteKSC, LC-39B
ContractorNASA
Orbital parameters
Reference systemHeliocentric orbit
Flyby of Moon
Transponders
BandS-band
NASA CubeQuest Challenge
 

Team Miles was a 6U CubeSat that was to demonstrate navigation in deep space using innovative plasma thrusters. It was also to test a software-defined radio operating in the S-band for communications from about 4 million kilometers from Earth. Team Miles was one of ten CubeSats launched with the Artemis 1 mission into a heliocentric orbit in cislunar space on the maiden flight of the Space Launch System (SLS), that took place on 16 November 2022.[1][2] Team Miles was deployed but contact was not established with the spacecraft.[3]

Overview

Parameter Units/performance
Thrust 5 mN
Specific impulse (Isp) 760 seconds
Impulse 7456 N seconds
Power 22 watts
Wet mass 1.5 kg
Propellant mass 1 kg
Propellant Solid iodine
Thrust:Mass 3.3 mN/kg
Impulse:Power 338 N seconds/watt
Delta-V 12 kg craft 649 m/s

The spacecraft, a 6-Unit CubeSat — measuring 10 cm × 20 cm × 30 cm — was designed and is being developed by a non-profit group of fifteen citizen scientists and engineers (Fluid and Reason, LLC) based at Tampa, Florida.[4][5][6] Since the Team Miles won the first place at CubeQuest Challenge for the selection process,[7] Fluid and Reason, LLC stroke partnerships and became Miles Space, a commercial endeavor to further develop the technology and intellectual property that has come out of the design process.[4]

Propulsion

Wesley Faler, who leads Fluid and Reason, LLC., is the inventor of the ion thruster to be used, which he calls ConstantQ Model H.[8][4] It is a form of electric propulsion for spacecraft. The engine is a hybrid plasma and laser thruster that uses ionized iodine as propellant.[9][6] The Model H system includes 4 thruster heads which are canted, allowing for both primary propulsion and attitude control (orientation) without the use of moving parts.[8][10] The goal within the CubeQest Challenge is to travel 4 million kilometers, but the team will attempt to go as far as 96 million kilometers before the end of the mission.[4]

Radio

The spacecraft will use the USRP B200mini, a software-defined radio operating in the S band for communications from about 4 million kilometers from Earth.[11]

See also

The 10 CubeSats flying in the Artemis 1 mission
The 3 CubeSat missions removed from Artemis 1

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Roulette, Joey; Gorman, Steve (2022-11-16). "NASA's next-generation Artemis mission heads to moon on debut test flight" (in en). Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/nasas-artemis-moon-rocket-begins-fueling-debut-launch-2022-11-15/. 
  2. Clark, Stephen (12 October 2021). "Adapter structure with 10 CubeSats installed on top of Artemis moon rocket". Spaceflight Now. https://spaceflightnow.com/2021/10/12/adapter-structure-with-10-cubesats-installed-on-top-of-artemis-moon-rocket/. 
  3. "Team Miles". NASA Space Science Coordinated Archive. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=TEAMMILES. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Cube Quest Challenge Spotlight: Team Miles". Space Daily. 19 May 2017. https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Cube_Quest_Challenge_Spotlight_Team_Miles_999.html. 
  5. Jennifer Harbaugh (18 May 2017). "Cube Quest Challenge Spotlight: Team Miles". NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/centennial_challenges/cubequest/team_miles.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. 6.0 6.1 Jeremy S. Cook (30 August 2017). "The Miles CubeSat Might Be the Next Satellite Sent to Mars". https://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/self-taught-tampa-team-poised-to-send-winning-satellite-into-deep-space/2322213. 
  7. Roman, Monsi C.; Kim, Tony; Sudnik, Janet; Cylar, Rosalind; Porter, Molly; Sivak, Amy; Cavanaugh, Dominique; Krome, Kim (12-14 September 2017). "Centennial Challenges Program Overview: How NASA Successfully Involves the General Public in the Solving of Current Technology Gaps". AIAA SPACE and Astronautics Forum and Exposition. Orlando, Florida: AIAA Space and Astronautics Forum and Exposition. doi:10.2514/6.2017-5159. ISBN 978-1-62410-483-1. https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/pdf/10.2514/6.2017-5159. Retrieved 10 March 2021. 
  8. 8.0 8.1 "ConstantQ Spacecraft Propulsion". Fluid and Reason, LLC.. 2017. https://fluidandreason.com/constantq/. 
  9. Lloyd Sowers (12 May 2017). "Tampa team enters new Space Race with cube satellite". FOX13 Tampa Bay. https://www.fox13news.com/news/local-news/tampa-team-in-new-space-race. 
  10. "ConstantQ™ Thruster". Miles Space. 2017. https://miles-space.com/thruster/. 
  11. Scott Schaire (2018). "Investigation into New Ground Based Communications Service Offerings in Response to SmallSat Trends". 32nd Annual AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites Document SSC18-SI-07. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4222&context=smallsat.