CubeSat Astronomy Workshop
Friday, April 26, 2019
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California
Chair: Charles Van Steenwyk / Co-Chair: Russell Genet
Sponsored by PlaneWave Instruments
In 1999, California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) and Stanford University proposed designing, building, and operating standardized miniature satellites they called CubeSats as an educational tool for teaching students about spacecraft hardware, electronics, programming, and operation. The basic 1U CubeSat is 10 cm on a side, while a 3U CubeSat is 10x10x30 cm. This standardization not only allowed multiple CubeSats to be deployed from spring-loaded boxes as excess cargo, but encouraged the development and manufacture of miniature power, communications, computer, and orientation modules that fit together in a CubeSat.
Originally, most CubeSats were designed by students and faculty, but commercially designed and operated CubeSats are now in the majority, such as the many downward-pointing 3U telescopes built and operated by PLANET, a Silicon Valley tech startup. It’s not hard to envision many upward-pointing CubeSat telescopes designed, built, and utilized by students and faculty for astronomical research. A few have already been launched, and, as suggested by Arizona State University astronomer Evgenya Shkolnik by the title of her recent paper (attached), we are “On the verge of an astronomy CubeSat revolution.”
Each year, for the past 15 years, Cal Poly has hosted the CubeSat Developer’s Workshop, and this year (2019) it will be immediately followed, by a modest, one-day CubeSat Astronomy Workshop. All are welcome. You can register via the website of the Institute for Student Astronomical Research, www.in4star.org/cubesat-astronomy. Alternatively, you can register at the Cal Poly CubeSat Developer’s Workshop website, www.cubesat.org/workshop-information. Scroll down near the bottom.
Contacts
Workshop Chair: Charles VanSteenwyk, cvanstee2@gmail.com, 805.503.5087
Workshop Co-Chair: Russell Genet, russmgenet@aol.com, 805.438.3305.

Workshop Agenda
Thursday, April 25th, 2019
18:00
Pre-Workshop Dinner at Beda's Biergarten
Friday, April 26th - ATL Keck Center Building 7, Room 2, California Polytechnic State University
9:00 - 9:10
Opening Remarks - Introduction
Charles Van Steenwyk and Russell Genet - California Polytechnic State University
9:30
CubeSats and SmallSats Astrophysics
Michael Garcia - NASA Science Mission Directorate
10:15
Optical Communications for CubeSats
Tyler Ritz - University of Florida
10:45
Break / Snacks
11:00
Arcsecond Space Telescope Enabling Research in Astrophysics (ASTERIA)
Mary Knapp - MIT
11:30
HaloSat X-Ray CubeSat
Daniel LaRocca - University of Iowa
12:00
Lunch
13:00
Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment
Arika Egan - Colorado University
13:30
Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat
Tahina Ramiaramanantsoa - Arizona State University
14:00
Cal Poly CubeSat Capabilities
Amelia Greig - California Polytechnic State University
14:30
Break / Snacks
15:00-15:10
Introduction to USQ and Model-Based Systems Engineering
Alejandro Levi - Univ. S. Queensland INOSE / SSWG
15:30
Exploring the Future of CubeSat Astronomy
Charles Van Steenwyk - California Polytechnic State University
15:45
Discussion/Workshop
16:45
Closing Remarks
Charles Van Steenwyk - California Polytechnic State University
18:00
Dinner at Beda's Biergarten - 230 Broad St Ste 130, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Saturday, April 27
9:00
Breakfast at The Apple Farm