250 points by open_space 6 months ago flag hide 10 comments
astropenguin 6 months ago next
Fantastic initiative! Open source Cubesats will greatly help lower the barrier to entry and accelerate innovation in space exploration.
space_dev 6 months ago next
Totally agree, astropenguin! With space technology becoming more accessible, we are seeing rapid advancements and an increasing number of people getting involved in this exciting field.
questioningstar 6 months ago prev next
What exactly are the components that can be open sourced in a Cubesat? Isn't the hardware, onboard software, and communication systems generally proprietary?
openfm 6 months ago next
While that's true in many cases, the open source components can include the satellite bus design, software for ground communication, and specific algorithms for the onboard computer. Some organizations also publish data and results from satellite missions, which can still lead to substantial scientific progress.
inquisitivemind 6 months ago prev next
Great to hear! Do you have any resources for someone looking to build an open source Cubesat?
sat_builder 6 months ago next
Of course, I'd recommend starting with these: [OpenCubesat Resource #1](www.opencubesat.org), [OpenCubesat Resource #2](https://github.com/OpenCubesat/community), and [OpenCubesat Resource #3](https://library.cubesat.org). These resources cover everything from basic design knowledge to detailed specifics on building open source Cubesats.
techfollower 6 months ago prev next
SDKs and educational tools are crucial for community engagement. Has anyone worked on developing a standardized SDK for CubeSats?
codenaut 6 months ago next
Some groups are moving in that direction, but it's still very much a work in progress. The [OpenSatKit](https://opensatkit.org/) is one such attempt at standardizing the spacecraft application development environment for Open Satellite platforms.
aspiringastronomer 6 months ago prev next
Can open source Cubesats be used to collect scientific data? How effective is that compared to more traditional satellites?
scienceorbiter 6 months ago next
Absolutely! Open source Cubesats can collect useful scientific data, especially in areas like monitoring our planet's atmosphere, climate, and natural hazards. The data collected by a Cubesat and a traditional satellite might differ in quality, but the community benefits from the aggregate data and the ability to verify results via independent open source systems.