PW-Sat

PW-Satis a series of PolishCubeSatsdesigned and built by students at theWarsaw University of Technologyin conjunction with theFaculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering of Warsaw University of Technology,theSpace Research Centre of Polish Academy of Sciences,and theEuropean Space Agency.As of January 1, 2024, there have been 2PW-Satswith a third in development. The firstPW-Satwas the firstPolishartificial satellitewhich was launched 13 February 2012 fromELA-1atGuiana Space Centreaboard Italian-builtVega launch vehicleduring its maiden voyage.After their graduation, the team that developed the originalPW-Sathave also worked to develop the subsequent missions, establishing a private company namedPW-Satto design and manufacturer the PW-Sats, all of which test novel deorbiting methods, with the overall goal of the program to develop solutions tospace debris.

PW-Sat1

PW-Sat

PW-Sat was the first Polish-built satellite.
Mission type	Technology
Operator	Polish Academy of Sciences(Space Research Centre)
COSPAR ID	2012-006G
SATCATno.	38083
Mission duration	1 year
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	1UCubeSat
Manufacturer	Warsaw University of Technology(Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering)
Launch mass	1 kilogram (2.2 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	13 February 2012, 10:00:00(2012-02-13UTC10Z)UTC
Rocket	VegaVV01
Launch site	KourouELV
Contractor	Arianespace
End of mission
Decay date	28 October 2014
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	300 kilometres (190 mi)
Apogee altitude	1,023 kilometres (636 mi)
Inclination	69.47 degrees
Period	97.83 minutes
Epoch	9 November 2013, 01:40:17 UTC

Development

The PW-Sat project was created in 2004 when group of students fromWarsaw University of Technologydecided to build satellite compatible with CubeSat 1U standard.Initially planned for a 2007 launch, delays in the development of the Vega caused the mission to be postponed until 2012.The cost of the project was estimated to be 200,000Polish zloty(63,205USD), with funding coming from the university's budget, as well as from an agreement between Poland and theEuropean Space Agency.

Hardware

PW-Sat1 was a 10x10x10 cm cube with a mass of 1 kg. It is equipped with the following hardware:

• EPS: power module
• ANTS: antenna management system
• COM: communication compartment
• PLD: elastic solar cells management sub-system
• OBC: main computer
• Access port
• Elastic solar cells (part of primary mission)
• Atmospheric drag device (part of primary mission)
• AX.25transceiver
• CWbeacon transmitting on 145.901 MHz for tracking byradio amateurs

Mission

PW-Sat1 was launched on 13 February 2012, 10:00 UTC fromELA-1atGuiana Space Centre(Kourou,French Guiana) aboard the maiden flight of the Vega rocket, together withLARESandALMASat-1satellites and 6 other CubeSats built by various European universities.It was deployed 1 hour 10 minutes into the flight from the P-POD-2 container, along with theROBUSTAandMaSat-1CubeSats.

First signals from satellite were received around 12:10 UTC by radio amateurs.The first Polish reception of PW-Sat1's signals came at 12:15 UTC by CAMK in Warsaw.

PW-Sat1 was planned stay in orbit until 2013, when it was planned to perform a destructiveatmospheric reentry.The satellite used a large amount of the batteries' stored energy while performing tasks early in the mission. This battery depletion, combined with orbital maneuvers designed so the satellite would fly over Poland, delayed deployment of the tail. Commands of tail deployment were sent from Earth on April and May 2012, but PW-Sat did not respond to the commands.Due to a hardware issue with the communication module (that was discovered on a few other CubeSats using the same model) communication with the satellite was problematic and the tail couldn't be extended.

PW-Sat1 reentered the atmosphere on 28 October 2014.

Development of a successor, PW-Sat2, begun in September 2013 and was launched in December 2018.

PW-Sat2

PW-Sat2

PW-Sat2 After its completion on 28 February 2018
Mission type	Technology
COSPAR ID	2012-006G
SATCATno.	38083
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	2UCubeSat
Manufacturer	Warsaw University of Technology(Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering)
Start of mission
Launch date	December 3, 2018
Rocket	Falcon 9v1.1 FT
Launch site	Vandenberg Air Force BaseSLC-4E
Contractor	Innovative Space Logistics B.V.
End of mission
Last contact	September 22, 2019
Decay date	February 23, 2021
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
PW-Sat2 mission patch

Development

PW-Sat1'ssuccessor,PW-Sat2was also developed by students at the Warsaw University of Technology immediately after the launch ofPW-Sat1.The cubesat's primary payload was a 2m by 2msolar sailtechnology demonstration, meant to de orbitPW-Sat2as a proof of concept for the technology. However,PW-Sat2would only deploy its sail after a 40-day window so that its secondary payload, an experimental sun sensor, can perform its tests.

Mission

PW-Sat2would be launched aboard theFalcon 9SSO-A'sSERPAflight on December 3, 2018. The probe successfully deployed its secondary payload and after the allotted 40 day window deployed its primary payload. However, the solar sail would fail to deorbitPW-Sat2,and would instead begin to deteriorate. Although the exact cause of the sail's failure is not known, thePW-Sat2team's "leading hypothesis is that temperature gradient between sail foil and arms leads to tension and breaking the foil." Regardless,PW-Sat2deorbited along its original path on February 23, 2021, however, the last update from the team was on September 22, 2019.

PW-Sat3

Development

A third cubesat, thePW-Sat3is currently under development by students at the Warsaw University of Technology. This rendition of the satellite is expected for launch in 2024 aboard anRFA Oneon the launch vehicle's second ever launch.PW-Sat3will be controlled by aKP LabsAntelope on-board computer runningOryx modular flight software.

ThePW-Sat3'smission requires a change in altitude and as such required the design of an onboard thruster. Thecold gas thrusterusesbutaneas a propellant and will perform station-keeping maneuvers and at the end of the mission will perform the deorbiting maneuver.

Hardware

Besides the aforementioned butane thruster, the 3U CubeSat will also carry the following hardware:

• AOCS system: The primary payload, a customAOCS systemthat will be used during propulsion maneuvers to align the satellite in the optimal orientation.
• EHS sensors: The secondary experiment, a series ofEarth Horizon Sensorsmade from industrial IR matrixes.
• Camera module: Similarly toPW-Sat2,PW-Sat3will have an onboard camera to document the probe and its experiments.
• The development team is planning on having an onboard transponder that would allowamateur radioenthusiasts to broadcast radio packets and to possibly download on-demand low-resolution images from the camera. After the completion of its scientific payloads,PW-Sat3'sradio will emit a series of commemorative radio beacons before final deorbiting. The development team has also promised that all telemetry frame formats will be thoroughly described and made publicly available on the project website, as well as decoders and the accompanying software application.

See also

• BRITE
• Lem (BRITE-PL)
• Heweliusz (BRITE-PL)