Visualisation of a nanosatellite during an extraterrestrial mission in the vicinity of the moon.
Visualisation of a nanosatellite during an extraterrestrial mission in the vicinity of the moon. What tasks can nanosatellites perform around the moon or even further away from Earth? A new study at the University of Würzburg aims to clarify this. Satellites for communication, navigation or Earth observation do their rounds in near-Earth orbits. But it is becoming apparent that mankind will soon also be using satellites at greater distances from Earth. Nanosatellites about the size of a shoebox are already being used for lunar missions. They act partly autonomously, but also serve to support larger spacecraft. "A good example is also the Mars Cube One mission, which consisted of two nanosatellites and supported the landing of the MarsInsight mission in 2018," says Hakan Kayal, Professor of Space Technology at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) in Bavaria, Germany.
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