Star Tracker from SOLAR MEMS to Fly on 2024 LizzieSat Mission
A star tracker developed by SOLAR MEMS will fly on the fourth planned LizzieSat mission, currently scheduled to launch with SpaceX in June of next year.
“Including SOLAR MEMS Star Tracker in our payload rideshare program is a natural fit with our emerging high-margin, recurring revenue, DaaS business."
Carol Craig, Sidus Space
Sidus Space will host the Star Tracker as a part of its payload rideshare program. This payload rideshare is available for customers to launch and test their own technology aboard Sidus’ satellites. As a part of the program, Sidus will provide space aboard its LizzieSat satellite, along with launch support, testing, and the ability to conduct experiments over the expected five-year timeline of the mission, with the goal of evaluating the Star Tracker’s capabilities for the broader satellite sensor market.
SOLAR MEMS Star Tracker helps Determine a Satellite's Position
Star trackers are used to determine a satellite’s orientation and position in space. SOLAR MEMS is a leader in Sun Sensor technologies for small and medium spacecraft. Its Star Tracker is autonomous and will be used to capture images of star constellations to help determine the accuracy of star locations and use that information to determine the satellite's orientation with respect to the Earth. Its robustness is based on highly used COTS devices together with space grade parts, and it is plug & play, so it does not need any additional electronic support or module for operating.
“Sidus is pleased to be selected by SOLAR MEMS as a trusted mission partner to host its Star Tracker, which uses the highest level of technological innovation to determine constellation locations,” commented Carol Craig, Sidus’ Founder and CEO. “Including SOLAR MEMS Star Tracker in our payload rideshare program is a natural fit with our emerging high-margin, recurring revenue, DaaS business, and we look forward to collaborating with SOLAR MEMS on this project.”
Solar MEMS sun sensors have a flight heritage dating back to 2009. The company is the sun sensor supplier of OneWeb Satellites, the manufacturer of the OneWeb megaconstellation.
(Source: SOLAR MEMS news release. Images provided and from file)