Preliminary Design and Prototype for a 1P PocketQube Earth Observation Satellite

This paper describes a proposed design for a 1P PocketQube Earth observation satellite being developed by undergraduate students at Wentworth Institute of Technology. This satellite will push boundaries in satellite miniaturization, image sensors, and commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components. By proving a new set of PocketQube hardware, future missions should carry less risk. Special care was taken to design measures to prevent, mitigate, or recover from the effects of ionizing radiation. An attitude determination and control system (ADCS) using embedded magnetorquer was designed to give authority over the pointing of the camera payload; allowing for more frequent imaging and live adjustments of image target.