CatSat: CubeSat Engineering and Communication Technologies

As more spacecraft enter low-Earth orbit each year, there is an increasing need to improve the downlink speed of small satellites and understand more about the Earth's atmosphere. CatSat is a 6U CubeSat designed to test a novel inflatable antenna design and conduct ionospheric research with an onboard HF antenna. The inflatable antenna is a solution for future high speed communication with small satellites as current small satellites are limited in data transmission capabilities by stringent size and mass constraints. The HF antenna experiment will probe the Earth's ionosphere during twilight by analyzing WSPR and other HF radio transmissions from the ground. CatSat was designed and built primarily by students at the University of Arizona in partnership with Tucson companies. CatSat is fully qualified for launch in 2024. Current work involves the development of X-band and UHF ground stations and preparations for flight operations.