Very-small-satellite design for distributed space missions

A new class of remote sensing and scientific distributed space missions is emerging, which requires hundreds to thousands of satellites for simultaneous multi-point sensing. These missions, stymied by the lack of a low-cost mass-producible sensor node, can become reality by merging the concepts of distributed satellite systems and terrestrial wireless sensor networks. A novel sub-kilogram very small satellite design can potentially enable these missions. Existing technologies are first investigated, such as standardized picosatellites and microengineered aerospace systems. Two new alternatives are then presented that focus on a low-cost approach by leveraging existing commercial mass-production capabilities: satellite-on-a-chip (SpaceChip) and satellite-on-a-printed circuit board (PCBSat). Preliminary results indicate that SpaceChip and PCBSat offer an order of magnitude cost savings over existing approaches.