The ALEXIS small satellite project: better, faster, cheaper faces reality

ALEXIS is a miniature satellite and carries both soft X-ray astrophysics and ionospheric physics experiments. The soft X-ray experiment is a novel set of wide-angle, normal incidence telescopes which scan half the sky every satellite rotation. BLACKBEARD is a broadband receiver and digitizer designed to study ionospheric propagation in the 25-175-MHz band. The spin-stabilized spacecraft is compact and efficient; it provides 50 W to the payload while consuming 10 W itself. ALEXIS will fly on a Pegasus air-launched booster. The ALEXIS integration history and lessons learned therein are discussed.<>