Category: Launch: 2019

LightSail

The LightSail missions, both LightSail 1 and LightSail 2, were developed by The Planetary Society to provide a functional demonstration of light propulsion for spacecraft. LightSail 1 demonstrated that the sail itself could be safely launched and deployed upon atmospheric insertion. Building on this success, LightSail 2 demonstrated the ability to raise the apogee of its own orbit through the sole use of sail deployment and solar sailing.

Each CubeSat was built on a 3U standard bus and weighed approximately 5kg at launch. The craft were powered by 4 solar arrays which ran the length of the 3U bus and could be deployed to ensure that they did not interfere with the boom release or the sail deployment.

Launch and Deployment:

LightSail 1 was launched on an Atlas V vehicle on May 20th, 2015.  It was placed in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) as planned; however, a software problem caused initial sail deployment to fail. A well timed radiation induced system reboot allowed ground control to reestablish contact with LightSail 1 and the sail was properly deployed on June 7th, 2015. Due to the atmospheric drag in LEO LightSail 1 was not actually able to perform any solar sailing and it decayed on June 15th, 2015. Despite this, the demonstration of sail deployment following launch allowed researchers to quickly apply their progress to LightSail 2.

LightSail 2 was launched June 25th, 2019, just over 4 years later, onboard a Falcon Heavy launch vehicle as part of Prox-1. The satellite deployed from Prox-1 and flawlessly deployed its sail on July 23rd, 2019 and over the course of 1 month demonstrated successful solar sailing by raising its orbit by nearly 2 kilometers

Sources and Additional Information:

  1. https://www.space.com/light-sail-first-photo-satellite-tracking.html
  2. https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/lightsail-1.htm
  3. https://directory.eoportal.org/web/eoportal/satellite-missions/content/-/article/lightsail1
  4. https://www.planetary.org/sci-tech/lightsail
  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LightSail
  6. https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=44420
Acronymn/a
Full NameLightSail 1,2
Size3U
StatusLightSail 1: Decayed
LightSail 2: Active
Launch DateLightSail 1: May 20th, 2015
LightSail 2: June 25th, 2019
NORAD IDLightSail 2: 44420
Downlink FrequencyLightSail 2: 437.025 MHz

MISSE-11

MISSE-12 is an external craft within the MISSE series aimed at testing various materials in the harsh environment of space. The crafts include ram, wake, zenith, and nadir exposures. (These are coordinate axes in the spacecraft-centered coordinate system.)

Craft Overview:

MISSE-12 was sent to the International Space Station (ISS) with three MISSE sample carriers (MSC’s). These are what house the different material samples which are to be tested in the vacuum of space. A total of 99 different samples were included aboard MISSE-11 to be tested. This increased the total number of MISSE samples to 349.

Results of the Mission:

The mission was a success. The ram and zenith MSC’s were returned to Earth aboard the SpaceX-20 Dragon capsule on April 7, 2020. The wake MSC was returned aboard the SpaceX-21 capsule on January 13, 2021.

Deployment:

MISSE-11 was taken to the ISS aboard Cygnus NG-11 on April 17, 2019. MISSE-11 was fastened onto the outside of the ISS on April 26, 2019. It was installed in the area known as the MISSE Flight Facility (MISSE-FF) near the ISS’s solar panels.

Sources and Additional Information:

  1. https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/space/iss-research/misse/#introduction
  2. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/features/misse-11.html
  3. https://spaceflight101.com/dragon-spx14/misse-ff/
AcronymMISSE-11
Full NameMaterials International Space Station Experiment – 11
Size12U
StatusInactive
Launch DateApril 17, 2019
Principal InvestigatorJud Ready

MISSE-12

MISSE-12 is an external craft within the MISSE series aimed at testing various materials in the harsh environment of space. The crafts include ram, wake, zenith, and nadir exposures. (These are coordinate axes in the spacecraft-centered coordinate system.)

Craft Overview:

MISSE-12 was sent to the International Space Station (ISS) carrying MISSE sample carriers (MSC’s). These are what house the different material samples which are to be tested in the vacuum of space. The MSC’s were deployed onto the ISS in either December 2019 or March 2020.

Results of the Mission:

The mission was a success. The MSC’s were returned to Earth aboard the SpaceX-21 mission on January 13, 2021.

Deployment:

MISSE-12 was taken to the ISS aboard Cygnus NG-12 on November 2, 2019. The MISSE-12 craft was fastened onto the outside of the ISS between December 2019 and March 2020. It was installed in the area known as the MISSE Flight Facility (MISSE-FF) near the ISS’s solar panels.

Sources and Additional Information:

  1. https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/space/iss-research/misse/#introduction
  2. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/features/misse-11.html
  3. https://spaceflight101.com/dragon-spx14/misse-ff/
AcronymMISSE-12
Full NameMaterials International Space Station Experiment – 12
Size12U
StatusInactive
Launch DateNovember 11, 2019
Principal InvestigatorJud Ready