For $250 a week you will get a tiny satellite that can be programmed from the ground
Photo credit Evan Ackerman/DVICE
A new American venture is expected to make research using satellites much cheaper. The project, by the NanoSatisfi company, consists of a tiny satellite that can be programmed from the ground to perform various photographs and measurements. The company offers to rent it to anyone for $250 per week.
The entrepreneurs raised the money to build the first two satellites from the public on the Internet. They are intended for launch from the International Space Station towards the end of the year and each of them is expected to operate for about two months.
In recent days, the Israeli satellite company Spacialist signed an agreement for cooperation with the American enterprise, within the framework of which it plans to establish a ground station in Israel, in addition to the station in California.
The CEO of NanoSatisfi, Peter Platzer, said, "We are excited about the opportunity to work with SPACECIALIST to offer students in Israel educational tools and access to our satellites. NanoSatisfi believes that MTA education, which includes inspiring practical aspects, is at the heart of innovation, competitiveness, and economic growth. As a global hi-tech center, Israel is a natural place for us, and the involvement of the SPACECIALIST company in initiatives to promote the space industry and science education in Israel, makes it an ideal partner for us"
(So far the article by Itai Nebo, hence quotes from the press release of Specialist)
The CEO of SPACECIALIST, Meidad Pariente, said, "We are excited about the opportunity to present to the youth and students in Israel an amazing educational tool such as the ArduSat satellites, which were designed and built by NanoSatisfi and use satellite hardware from our other partners GomSpace and ISIS. This is a wonderful opportunity for the general public who has not had access to space until now to get practical experience as space engineers, which includes planning experiments with the help of the many research equipment available in satellites, controlling and controlling a real satellite and even downloading images and information from space directly to the personal computer.
According to Farinta, the partnership agreement entered into force this week and allows the Israeli public access to NanoSatisfi's services. The companies are exploring additional ways of cooperation such as the establishment of a ground station in Israel to command and control the ArduSat satellites which will enable doubling the volume of the planned activity
