Overview

Cube Satellites (CubeSats) are a new space technology typically deployed into low Earth orbit for tasks such as imaging or weather. Their low cost combined with NASA's willingness to experiment with them allow for smaller corporations to get involved in their development. At Drexel University, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the idea of autonomously docking CubeSats is being explored by Dr. Ajmal Yousuff. Combining CubeSats together in space allow for larger space crafts to be assembled in space, rather than being launched, fully-built, from the ground. Massive telescopes and solar sails put together piece by piece in orbit are just some of the possibilities for these space building blocks. This project explores developing a navigation system for autonomous CubeSat meetup and docking.

I took on this project from Dr. Yousuff as part of Drexel's Students Tackling Advanced Research (STAR) freshman summer program. This web-page documents my progress with the project over the summer and beyond.