What is a CubeSat

A CubeSat is a nanosatellite which consists out of cubes of 10 cm. A standard CubeSat is 1U, 1U is 10x10x10 cm. There are also 1.5U, 2U and 3U CubeSats, these are combinations of several CubeSats. With solar panels it battery can survive longer and with an antenna communications is possible. Currently a CubeSat costs around $10.000 and the launch of one costs around $65.000. Usually a CubeSat can survive 2 years in space and after those 2 years the CubeSat stops sending data. CubeSats are carried into space on a Poly-PicoSatellite Orbital Deployer or P-POD for short. The standard P-POD holds 3 Cubesats and fits on almost any rocket as a secondary payload. Over 100 Cubesats have been launched into space since they were first introduced by CalPoly and Stanford in 1999. To reduce space debris they are usually placed in low orbits and fall back to earth in a few weeks or months.