These are the flying discs the government wants you to know about
DiskSat's design offers "a power-to-weight ratio unmatched by traditional aluminum satellites."
Downshifting to 2D
DiskSat’s design offers “a power-to-weight ratio unmatched by traditional aluminum satellites.”
An artist's illustration of DiskSats deploying from a rocket in low-Earth orbit. Credit: NASA
Four small satellites rode a Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle into orbit from Virginia early Thursday, beginning a government-funded technology demonstration mission to test the performance of a new spacecraft design.
The satellites were nestled inside a cylindrical dispenser on top of the 59-foot-tall (18-meter) Electron rocket when it lifted off from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility at 12:03 am EST (05:03 UTC). A little more than an hour later, the rocket’s upper stage released the satellites one at a time at an altitude of about 340 miles (550 kilometers).
The launch was the starting gun for a proof-of-concept mission to test the viability of a new kind of satellite called DiskSats. These satellites were designed by the Aerospace Corporation, a nonprofit federally funded research and development center. The project is jointly financed by NASA and the US Space Force, which paid for DiskSat’s development and launch, respectively.
“DiskSat is a lightweight, compact, flat disc-shaped satellite designed for optimizing future rideshare launches,” the Aerospace Corporation says in a statement.
The DiskSats are 39 inches (1 meter) wide, about twice the diameter of a New York-style pizza, and measure just 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) thick. Made of composite carbon fiber, each satellite carries solar cells, control avionics, reaction wheels, and an electric thruster to change and maintain altitude.
“The launch went perfectly, and the DiskSat dispenser worked exactly as designed,” said Darren Rowen, the project’s chief engineer, in a statement. “We’re pleased to have established contact with all four of the DiskSats, and we’re looking forward to the rest of the demonstration mission.”
An engineer prepares Aerospace Corporation’s DiskSats for launch at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Credit: Aerospace Corporation
A new form factor
The Aerospace Corporation has a long history of supporting the US military and NASA since its founding in 1960. A few years ago, engineers at the center developed the DiskSat concept after surveying the government’s emerging needs in spaceflight.
CubeSats have been a ubiquitous part of the satellite industry for nearly a quarter-century. They are based on a cube-shaped design, measuring about 10 centimeters per side, but can be scaled from a single cube “unit” to three, six, 12, or more, depending on mission requirements. The CubeSat standard has become a popular choice for commercial companies, the military, NASA, and universities looking to build small satellites on a tight budget.
