With smartphones becoming so powerful, it was only a matter of time before someone realized they could use one to power a satellite. And now here’s the STRaND-1, a satellite that uses a Google Nexus One smartphone.
The most incredible things about the STRaND-1, of course, is the fact that many of its core components are built into the smartphone. From accelerometers to processors, cameras to antennas, a smartphone has most of the gear you need to operate a satellite.
Weighing in at 4.3kg with a height of just 30 centimeters, this miniscule orbiter is the latest iteration of an increasingly popular way to explore space: nanosatellites.
The STRaND-1 (Surrey Training, Research and Nanosatellite Demonstrator) was developed by Surrey Satellite Technology LTD and the University of Surrey’s Space Center.
Surrey Satellite Technology’s main goal for the STRaND-1 is to see how a satellite based on a smartphone will hold up in space. According to Dr. Chris Bridges, the STRaND-1 project lead, “A smartphone on a satellite like this has never been launched before but our tests have been pretty thorough, subjecting the phone to oven and freezer temperatures, to a vacuum and blasting it with radiation. It has a good chance of working as it should, but you can never make true design evolutions or foster innovation without taking a few risks: STRaND is cool because it allows us to do just that.”
The STRaND-1 will be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, India on February 25 aboard the Indian Space Research Organization’s Polar Satellite Launch vehicle. Godspeed nanosat, godspeed.
Watch an animation of the satellite below:
Images and Video Courtesy of Surrey Satellite Technology LTD