Tag Archives: CubeSats

Task done, InSight’s MarCO says Farewell to Mars

Posted on November 27, 2018 by rburnham

[Ed. note: For more on this image and the role played by the MarCO CubeSats, see here.] MarCO-B, one of the experimental Mars Cube One (MarCO) CubeSats, took this image of Mars from about 4,700 miles (6,000 kilometers) away during … Continue reading →

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MarCo spots Mars

Posted on October 22, 2018 by rburnham

ASA’s MarCO mission was designed to find out if briefcase-sized spacecraft called CubeSats could survive the journey to deep space. Now, MarCO — which stands for Mars Cube One — has Mars in sight. One of the twin MarCO CubeSats … Continue reading →

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MarCO makes space for small explorers

Posted on September 13, 2018 by rburnham

Twenty years ago, CubeSats — a class of boxy satellites small enough to fit in a backpack — were used by universities as a teaching aid. Simpler, smaller and cheaper than traditional satellites, they’ve made space more accessible to private … Continue reading →

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InSight’s CubeSats switched on, respond

Posted on May 7, 2018 by rburnham

NASA has received radio signals indicating that the first-ever CubeSats headed to deep space are alive and well. The first signal was received at 12:15 p.m. PST (3:15 p.m. EST) today; the second at 1:58 p.m. PST (4:58 p.m. EST). … Continue reading →

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CubeSats will accompany InSight to Mars

Posted on June 15, 2015 by rburnham

When NASA launches its next mission on the journey to Mars — a stationary lander in 2016 — the flight will include two CubeSats. This will be the first time CubeSats have flown in deep space. If this flyby demonstration … Continue reading →

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