CPUT to unveil South Africa’s first CubeSat
NNOVATION: South Africa’s first CubeSat, ZACUBE-01, which was developed by the French South African Institute of Technology, a specialised unit at CPUT.
Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Researchers at CPUT are taking innovation to another level with the development of South Africa’s first CubeSat - a type of miniature satellite.
The CubeSat, ZACUBE-01, will be unveiled on Friday, 30 September 2011 at the French South African Institute of Technology (F’SATI), a specialised unit at CPUT’s Bellville campus that focuses on satellite engineering.
“This is a significant milestone for our institution, and country,” said F’SATI Deputy-Director, Professor Robert van Zyl, who is driving CPUT’s space activities.
The CubeSat, which measures 30x10x10 cm and weighs approximately three kilograms, was built by staff members and postgraduate students specialising in F’SATI’s Satellite Systems Engineering Programme.
This postgraduate programme, which is backed by the Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation, aims at developing the human potential and intellectual capacity needed to grow South Africa’s space industry.
Offered as a postgraduate course, the programme covers the broad fields of satellite communication, embedded and power systems, as well as electric and magnetic compatibility studies.
The building of CubeSats forms an integral part in the programme, providing students with the exposure and discipline they will need to work on bigger satellites in industry.
Prof van Zyl said currently they are involved in the development of a second CubeSat, ZACUBE-02, which they plan to unveil in 2012.
If all goes as planned, ZACUBE-01 will be launched early next year and used for space science experiments. Its activities will be monitored by the ground station, which has been set up at FSATI’s premises on the Bellville campus.
ZACUBE-01 will be showcased at the International Astronomical Federation Conference, which will be held in Cape Town in early October.
By: Candes Keating
Written by CPUT News
Email: news@cput.ac.za
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