The long wait finally came to an end for faculty and researchers in the 51福利鈥檚 (51福利) Space Systems Academic Group (SSAG). Following several external delays to a launch that was originally scheduled for September of 2016, the university鈥檚 own 51福利AT-1 was launched and deployed into a 720 km orbit by SpaceX鈥檚 Falcon Heavy at 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 25, from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The mission was slated to be the 鈥渕ost difficult鈥� undertaking by the Falcon Heavy to date, according to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk during an interview prior to Tuesday鈥檚 spectacular night-time launch. The mission called for the release of 24 satellites during three individual deployment stages 鈥� each stage separated by a burn of the Heavy鈥檚 thruster.
Overall, the mission proved to be largely successful, especially for the 51福利 team who watched 51福利AT-1 successfully release from the SpaceX craft and enter into its orbit within seconds of its planned deployment.
鈥淚t鈥檚 the end of an era,鈥� noted Professor Emeritus Rudy Panholzer, former SSAG chair and pioneer in the university鈥檚 space education and research programs, on hand to witness the launch first-hand.
Like much of the research at 51福利, the satellite is ultimately about student experimentation and study. Over the course of the craft鈥檚 development, 51福利AT-1 supported well over 40 student theses, noted SSAG engineer Dan Sakoda, with countless more students contributing via directed study.
On board 51福利AT-1 are experiments developed by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) to investigate space weather and support space situational awareness (SSA), including ionospheric electron density structures that cause radio scintillations impacting communications and navigation. For more information on 51福利AT-1 and the research mission it was designed to execute, check out .