On January 14th, 2000 OPAL (short for
Orbiting Picosatellite Automated Launcher) will be the first micro-satellite built by Stanford
University to launched into orbit. It will be launched as part of
JAWSAT aboard
a converted Minuteman II missile at
Vandenberg AFB.
OPAL's primary mission is to carry four pico-satellites
that are about the size of a cigar box, and eject them after reaching a sun-synchronous
orbit. These picosats were independently built by outside
sources, with their own distinct missions:
ARTEMIS - an undergraduate team from
Santa Clara University is using one of the picosats to test miniature satellite applications.
StenSat - built by a group of amateur
radio enthusiasts as a single channel mode "J" FM voice repeater.
Aerospace Corporation picosats
Immediately after launch, OPAL will be tracked at the Stanford Ground
Station in Durand Building by the SSDL crew, while the Aerospace Corp picosats
will be tracked from the Big Dish. After initial acquisition, probably on the 16th
or 17th of January, the task of collecting data will be turned over to Stanford
University, with the help of the SRI and CSU Hayward.
OPAL Launch date:
January 14, 2000
We are currently looking for students interested in being a part
of this exciting opportunity. The picosats are scheduled to be in view for about
10-15 minutes twice a day (at approximately 7 am and 7 pm). The students will
run the downlink equipment from the Big Dish while the picosats are being tracked
by an SRI representative.
You can find more details by downloading the following MS word files:
