CubeSat

Researchers have demonstrated quantum entanglement on a small satellite orbiting Earth. The team developed a miniaturized device that produces pairs of photons that are inextricably linked, which could help launch a fast and secure quantum internet.

NASA is planning to launch a tiny satellite aboard one of the most powerful rockets ever constructed, to hunt for ice hiding deep inside craters on the Moon’s surface that are bathed in perennial shadow.

NASA has given the green light to a new CubeSat mission to study the giant space weather storms produced by the Sun. Slated to launch after July 1, 2023, SunRISE will use six spacecraft as a single radio telescope to monitor solar particle storms.

Virgin Orbit has revealed plans for the first commercial satellite mission to Mars, where a new breed of tiny probes could help study the Red Planet.

ESA plans to launch the first Earth observation satellite incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) in a few months.

NASA has released images and footage of Hurricane Dorian, as it continues its menacing advance across the Atlantic Ocean.

Scientists are getting creative with propulsion methods for small spacecraft, including carrying water as fuel and converting it to steam. NASA’s OCSD mission has now leaned on this to pull off a first-of-a-kind maneuver between two of its CubeSats in low-Earth orbit.​

​​The way small satellites and scientific instruments find their way into space these days is by hitching a ride on large rockets carrying hefty payloads. But some are looking to change that, including SpaceX with a new launch program specifically for firing these small payloads into space.

The Planetary Society announced today that after unfurling its solar sail last week, the tiny spacecraft has successfully leveraged photons from the Sun to shift its trajectory in Earth orbit, a landmark moment in the history of space exploration. ​​

​​After launching into orbit aboard SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket last month, The Planetary Society’s LightSail 2 satellite has now entered the most critical phase of its mission, successfully unfurling its solar sail and starting to surf through space on the power of the Sun.

Mission plans for SULIS, a solar project designed to answer fundamental questions about the physics of solar storms, have been revealed. Using a cluster of small, formation-flying satellites known as CubeSats, SULIS will directly measuring the magnetic field of the Sun's corona for the first time.

Future spacecraft could be getting around under the power of sails. But of course, with no wind in space, these sails are catching another method of propulsion – photons from starlight. The tech is soon due to be demonstrated in action onboard LightSail 2, a small satellite due to launch next week.