SkyCube

SkyCube was an American crowdsourced CubeSat. It was first announced on Kickstarter on 14 July 2012 and successfully funded on 12 September 2012, meeting its US$82,500 goal with a total of US$116,890. It was developed and built in 2012–2013, completed flight integration at Nanoracks in late 2013, and launched aboard the Cygnus CRS Orb-1 flight at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island, Virginia on 9 January 2014. SkyCube was deployed from the International Space Station on 28 February 2014. Contact with the satellite was last made on 27 March 2014. SkyCube re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on 9 November 2014. It is one of several crowdfunded satellites launched during the 2010s.

SkyCube
SkyCube in undeployed state
Mission typeEarth imaging
OperatorSouthern Stars
COSPAR ID1998-067EN
SATCAT no.39569
Mission duration60 - 90 days (planned)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type1U CubeSat
ManufacturerNanoracks
Launch mass1.3 kg (2.9 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date9 January 2014, 18:07:05 UTC
RocketAntares 120
Launch siteMARS, LP-0A
ContractorOrbital Sciences
Deployed fromInternational Space Station
Deployment date28 February 2014
End of mission
Last contact27 March 2014
Decay date9 November 2014
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude408 km (254 mi)
Apogee altitude414 km (257 mi)
Inclination51.65°
Period92.79 minutes
 
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