CanX Program
CanX-1
CanX-2
CanX-3 - BRITE
CanX-4 & CanX-5

Toronto, August 14, 2006 - The UTIAS Space Flight Laboratory has signed a Launch Services Agreement with Antrix Corporation for a June 30, 2007 launch aboard the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The PSLV launches from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR), which is the main launch centre of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

Update March 2007: Atrix has notified us that the PSLV-C9 launch originally scheduled for June 30, 2007, has been delayed. The current launch window is mid-October 2007 to mid-November 2007. For planning purposes, all spacecraft should be ready to ship to the launch site as early as September 1, 2007. A more specific launch date will be posted when it becomes available.

Antrix Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). Image courtesey ISRO.

Six nanosatellites make up the UTIAS/SFL Nanosatellite Launch Service 4 (NLS-4) secondary payload aboard the PSLV. Such arrangements allow research labs to share the cost of access to space, with the Space Flight Laboratory acting as the lead partner. These satellites will be deployed into a sun synchronous orbit, with an altitude of 630 km, 98 degree inclination, and 10:30 ascending node.

The six spacecraft are as follows:

• CanX-2, UTIAS Space Flight Laboratory, Canada
• AAUSat-II, Aalborg University, Denmark
• Cute-1.7 + APD II, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan
• COMPASS-1, University of Aachen, Germany
• Delfi-C3, Technical University of Delft, The Netherlands
• SEEDS, Nihon University, Japan

CanX-2 is presently in the final stages of qualification testing at UTIAS/SFL, in preparation for this 2007 launch. This mission will evaluate novel technologies that will be used on the CanX-4 / CanX-5 dual satellite mission in 2008 to demonstrate formation flying in space. In addition to evaluating these miniature technologies, the satellite will also prform experiments for other university researchers across Canada. These include a GPS radio occultation experiment to characterize the upper atmosphere (Calgary), an atmospheric spectrometer to measure greenhouse gases (York), a network communications experiment (Carleton), and a space materials experiments (Toronto).

Most of the spacecraft on NLS-4 are being individually released into space by the XPOD deployment system. This is a custom, independent separation system that was designed and built at UTIAS/SFL for each satellite and may be tailored to satellites of different sizes ranging from "single" (1U) CubeSat to larger nanosatellites of arbitrary dimensions. Five XPODs of three different designs make up NLS-4. Cute-1.7 is being deployed by its own separation system which has successfully flown on a Japanese M-V-8, that launched on February 22, 2006.

UTIAS/SFL's current launch philosophy is based upon independent separation systems for each nanosatellite. In keeping with this philosophy, UTIAS/SFL collaborated with the University of Tokyo's Intelligent Space Systems Laboratory to develop next generation T-POD ejection systems for NLS-3 and NLS-4. The customizable T-POD separation system is now referred to as the eXperimental Push Out Deployer or "XPOD". XPODs can be tailored to any size of nanosatellite.

UTIAS/SFL arranges launches using a decentralized approach to mitigate risk for each nanosatellite developer. This proven approach ensures that the reliability, delivery, and export control issues of one nanosatellite do not affect the launch of the other nanosatellites.

More detailed information on the NLS-4 spacecraft, including deployment configuration, preliminary orbital elements (TLEs), and downlink frequencies and data formats for spacecraft using in the Amateur Satellite Service will be posted on this website in the near future.