Shaking Up Science: AcubeSat gets one step closer to space
In brief
AcubeSat, a 3U CubeSat developed by the SpaceDot team at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki as part of ESA’s Fly Your Satellite! 3 programme, has just reached a major milestone. The team recently travelled to Belgium to the ESEC-Galaxia centre, bringing along the Engineering Qualification Model (EQM) of their payload to undergo vibration qualification testing — a critical step to bringing them one step closer to space.
In-depth
AcubeSat is a Greek 3U CubeSat developed by the SpaceDot student team of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki as part of the Fly Your Satellite! 3 programme. The CubeSat has two main goals:
- Achieve storage, long-term growth and experimental observation of an eukaryotic model organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae
- Demonstrate the functionality of microfluidic chips for multi-parallel analyses of microorganisms in-orbit
To achieve such complicated objectives, the team has developed entirely in-house a complex payload capable of carrying out the experiment in a sealed and pressurized environment.
After numerous advancements, the team has finalised the design of their payload and six students travelled to the CubeSat Support Facility at the ESEC-Galaxia centre to subject its Engineering Qualification Model (EQM) to vibration qualification testing, simulating the intense conditions of launch through an electrodynamic shaker. This critical step is essential to verify that the payload can reach orbit safely.
As part of the test campaign, the payload was also subjected to a leak test inside the ThermoVacuum Chamber (TVAC) to ensure that no leaks occurred in vacuum as a result of the vibration test. In fact, maintaining a sealed and stable internal environment is critical for the success of the experiment, as any loss of pressure or contamination could compromise the scientific results. To carry out the test, specialised equipment was provided by the ESA ESTEC TEC-MTV Mechanical systems laboratory, highlighting the strong collaboration and support between ESA facilities.
After a week and a half of intensive work, the team’s payload successfully passed the tests with full marks, proving its ability to withstand the harsh launch conditions and function as intended afterward. Furthermore, the campaign not only served to fully test the payload but has also provided students with the unique opportunity to bridge the gap between theory and practice, allowing them to bring classroom concepts into a real-world engineering environment.
Through their involvement in every step of the campaign, the students generally gain not only technical expertise but also a sense of the precision, attention to detail, and documentation required in the space industry.
The next step for the SpaceDot team and the AcubeSat spacecraft is the Thermal-Vacuum test for their EQM which will aim to demonstrate the capabilities of the payload to operate in the space environment.
Congratulations to the AcubeSAT team on reaching this significant milestone on their journey toward sending a satellite into space!
If you are interested in learning more about opportunities like Fly Your Satellite! you can check out the ESA Academy current opportunities website to find out more.