PhotSat
Cubesat satellite to track the 10 million brightest stars in the sky
PhotSat is a project coordinated by the IEEC that involves the development and construction of a satellite to track the 10 million brightest stars in the sky for at least two years. Through an ingenious system of rotating mirrors, the satellite's two telescopes will take measurements of almost the entire sky every two days. These telescopes will have a diameter of about 10 cm and will be optimised for observing from ultraviolet to visible light. The measurements, which will be particularly accurate for bright stars, will be useful for a variety of scientific programmes, including the search for exoplanets, characterisation of stars and observation of transient phenomena, among many others.
PhotSat will have a cubesat format with a planned size of 12 units (each unit is a cube with a side of 10 cm) and a total weight of between 10 and 20 kg. The satellite will orbit the Earth in a low orbit, at an altitude of about 500 km, and will communicate and download the data it produces via the Sant Esteve de la Sarga Teleport at the Montsec Observatory.
PhotSat will be the first scientific satellite developed entirely (from the design phase to operations) by the IEEC and its academic and industrial ecosystem, which will generate valuable experience around NewSpace technologies and will contribute to enhance public-private collaboration.
Acknowledgements: This study was supported by MICIIN with funding from European Union NextGenerationEU (PRTR-C17.I1) and by Generalitat de Catalunya.
With the support of
