NanoSat Lab

³Cat-3

A multispectral 6U CubeSat


 

The ³Cat-3 (read “cube-cat-three”) MOTS is a study conducted for the Cartographic and Geologic Institute of Catalonia (ICGC) aimed at analyzing the feasibility of a small-satellite mission with a multispectral imaging payload. Apart from its low mass and volume, the ³Cat-3 development is expected to leverage on the small-satellite philosophy, and to push its cost and development time to the minimum thanks to the integration of standardized platforms and subsystems, developed at the NanoSat Lab.

 

Spacecraft class 6-Unit CubeSat.
Total mass ~10 kg.
Mission status Phase A: preliminary analysis.
Launch date (tentative) 2020.
Launcher details To Be Determined.
Launch sponsor

Institut Cartogràfic I Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC),

Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC).

System characteristics (planned)

  • On board computer:
    • ARM Cortex A5 @ 500 MHz.
    • Embedded RTOS Linux (Xenomai)
       
  • Communications subsystem:
    • UHF Half duplex. Uplink and downling @ 9600 bps.
    • High-speed S-band downlink (>4Mbps).
       
  • Scientific payload:
    • Optical image for 4-5 different bands in the VNIR: 440-510 nm, 520-590 nm, 620-680 nm, 690-730 nm and 850-890 nm
    • Swath between 30 – 50 Km
    • GSD between 5 – 10 m
    • SNR in all bands around 35-40 dB
    • MTF of the optic system over 20 lp/mm in all bands
    • Digitalization 12 bits/pixel
       
  • Orbit details:
    • Expected average time gap 3 days or less.
    • Expected revisit time 7 to 10 days.