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CubeSail (UltraSail)

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CubeSail
Mission typeTechnology: solar sail propulsion
OperatorNASA / University of Illinois
Websitecubesail.us
and
cuaerospace.com/about/cua-notable-achievements
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type2 × 1.5 U CubeSats
ManufacturerUniversity of Illinois
Launch mass~ 3 kg
Start of mission
Launch date16 December 2018 (2018-12-16)[1]
RocketElectron
Launch siteRocket Lab LC-1
ContractorRocket Lab
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth

CubeSail was a 2018 low-cost spacecraft propulsion demonstration mission using two identical 1.5U CubeSat satellites to deploy a 260 m (850 ft) long, 20 m2 (220 sq ft) solar sail ribbon between them.[2] This mission was a first in a series of increasingly-complex planned demonstrations leading up to a full-scale UltraSail heliogyro[3] by the University of Illinois and CU Aerospace.[needs update]

Background: Heliogyro

[edit]
Artist's concept of a heliogyro, proposed to visit Halley's Comet in 1986. Each blade would be 8 m (26 ft) wide and 6.2 km (3.9 mi) long, for 0.6 km2 (0.23 sq mi) of sail area.
Solar sail types. A heliogyro could have dozens of blades

UltraSail is a proposed type of robotic spacecraft that uses radiation pressure exerted by sunlight for propulsion. It builds upon the "heliogyro" concept[4] by Richard H. MacNeal, published in 1971,[5][6][3] and consists of multiple rotating blades attached to a central hub.

The Heliogyro spacecraft's attitude (orientation), and therefore thrust direction, would be controlled by changing the cyclic and collective blade pitch similar to a helicopter.

Although the Heliogyro design has no mass advantage over a square sail, it remains attractive because the method of deploying large sail blades is simpler than a strut-based design.[7] Blade stiffness is achieved by spinning the spacecraft (centrifugal force) with its rotational axis generally pointing at the Sun.

CubeSail spacecraft

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Overview

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The University of Illinois together with CU Aerospace designed this mission to demonstrate deployment and to measure the thrust on a 7.7 cm × 250 m membrane (about 20 m2) made of aluminized mylar. The membrane is deployed between two 1.5U CubeSats that separate from each other in low Earth orbit. It is intended as a first step towards the development of the larger solar sail concept called UltraSail.

Re-orientation of the CubeSats will cause the sail to undergo aerodynamic drag in the upper atmosphere for its disposal.

Selection

[edit]

The spacecraft was selected in 2012 by NASA to be launched as part of the ELaNa program.[8][9][10]

Launch

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CubeSail was launched on an Electron launch vehicle[11] on 16 December 2018 from New Zealand.[1][12]

While "satellite beacons at the correct frequency were observed post-launch once on 18 Dec. 2018", there was not "sufficient signal to noise ratio to demodulate the call sign in the beacons.", and "no further communications were received from CubeSail".[13]

Based upon the state vector initially provided by Rocket Lab after deployment, our best assessment is that CubeSail was Space-Track Object #43853 (“Object E”) which began with an average orbital altitude of 505 km. Space-Track.org lists this object as having decayed and burned up in the atmosphere on 14 December 2022, almost 4 years after launch.[14]

Follow-on

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I-sail

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The proposed second mission of the project is called I-Sail, proposed to be launched in 2022, and would consist of a 25 kg (55 lb) spacecraft with bilateral blades with a total sail area of 2,500 m2.[15] It will demonstrate thrust levels many times those of ion thrusters used for deep space missions and perform an Earth gravity escape.[15] Several science objectives are being assessed as secondary objectives.[15] The project is being funded by NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.[16]

UltraSail

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CubeSail and I-Sail are intended as steps towards the development of a larger (1,600 kg[17]) solar sail concept called UltraSail for interplanetary and interstellar missions.[18] This last consists of multiple CubeSail-like structures that extend kilometers long film blades attached to a central hub to ultimately form a heliogyro. The UltraSail blade material, the body of the solar sail, is mounted on multiple reels, each with a width of 5–10 m, and deployed to a blade length up to 5 km (3.1 mi)[17] for a total 100,000 m2 of sail area.[2][3] The spacecraft spins around the central hub to flatten the blades by centrifugal force, supported by tip-CubeSats. For the kilometre long blades' stability, this requires a rotational period of 1–2 hours so they overcome the solar pressure force by 3 to 5 times. Each blade is a thin polyimide film coated with ripstop.[17]

For UltraSail, blade control (and hence the spacecraft's attitude control) is initiated by small controllable mini-satellites (tipsats) at the tip of each blade.[17][19] The tipsat mass provides a stabilizing centrifugal force on the blade while in rotation. Each tipsat would be a 5-meter long carbon-fiber structure with a total mass of 50 kg, including avionics and 20 kg propellant (catalyzed nitrous oxide (N2O) and cold gas).[17] Alternatively, the tipsats could be propelled with electric microthrusters to control blade pitch.[20]

The maximum expected thrust force due to solar pressure is equivalent to 400 kW ion thruster systems used for comparable deep space missions.[20]

See also

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  • IKAROS, a Japanese solar sail, launched in May 2010
  • NanoSail-D2, the successor to NanoSail-D, launched in November 2010
  • LightSail, a controlled solar sail CubeSat launched in July 2019
  • Near-Earth Asteroid Scout, a solar sail CubeSat currently planned to launch in 2020
  • Sunjammer, a solar sail that was cancelled before launch in 2014

References

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  1. 1 2 Small Satellite Design and Testing Laboratory Archived 2018-01-28 at the Wayback Machine - CubeSail. University of Illinois. 2018.
  2. 1 2 CubeSail Homesite. CU Aerospace. Accessed on 30 December 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Initial Development of the CubeSail/UltraSail Spacecraft. R. L. Burton, J. K. Laystrom-Woodard, G. F. Benavides, D. L. Carroll, V. L. Coverstone, G. R. Swenson, A. Pukniel, A. Ghosh, and A. D. Moctezuma. (2010)
  4. ↑ "Heliogyro". SolarSailWiki. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
  5. ↑ MacNeal, R. H. (1971). Structural Dynamics of the Heliogyro (Report). NASA-CR-1745A.
  6. ↑ Burton, R.; Coverstone, V.; Hargens-Rysanek, J.; Ertmer, K.; Botter, T.; Benavides, G.; Woo, B.; Carroll, D.; Gierow, P. (July 2005). UltraSail - Ultra-Lightweight Solar Sail Concept (PDF). 41st AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference & Exhibit. Tucson, Arizona: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. doi:10.2514/6.2005-4117. ISBN 978-1-62410-063-5. AIAA 2005-4117.
  7. ↑ "Design & Construction". NASA JPL. Archived from the original on 2005-03-11.
  8. ↑ Anna Heiney, ELaNa 19: CubeSail, NASA, Dec. 10, 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  9. ↑ CubeSail. Gunter's Space Page, 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  10. ↑ CubeSat Launch Initiative. NASA. Upcoming ELaNa CubeSat Launches. 2018.
  11. ↑ STUDENT CUBESAIL SATELLITE LAUNCH IMMINENT, Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois, Dec. 06, 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  12. ↑ Pietrobon, Steven. "New Zealand Launch Record (2009 to present)". Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  13. ↑ "Welcome". www.cubesail.us. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
  14. ↑ "CUA Cubesail". CUA Cubesail Project. 2025-10-23.
  15. 1 2 3 I-Sail: 2500-Square-Meter Solar Sail Prototype Demonstrator. NASA SBIR 2017 Solicitation. 19 April 2017.
  16. ↑ ELaNa 19: CubeSail. NASA. 10 December 2019.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 R. L. Burton, J. K. Laystrom-Woodard, G. F. Benavides, D. L. Carroll, V. L. Coverstone, G. R. Swenson, A. Pukniel, A. Ghosh, and A. D. Moctezuma Initial development of the CubeSail UltraSail spacecraft. 27 August 2014.
  18. ↑ NASA to Launch Two Small AE Satellites. Aerospace Illinois. 22 February 2012.
  19. ↑ Design Concept for a Solar Sail with Individually Controllable Elements. (PDF) Tong Luo, Ming Xu, and Qingyu Qu. Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets. 2017. doi:10.2514/1.A33775
  20. 1 2 UltraSail. (PDF) R. Burton, and G. Benavides. 2003.
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