ROBUSTA (Radiation on Bipolar for University Satellite Test Application) is a nano-satellite scientific experiment developed by the University of Montpellier students as part of a Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES) call for student projects in the field of orbital systems.[3]

ROBUSTA
Mission typeTechnology
OperatorCentre Spatial Universitaire Montpellier-Nîmes
COSPAR ID2012–006H
SATCAT no.38084
Mission duration2 years (failed)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type1U CubeSat
Launch mass1 kilogram (2.2 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date13 February 2012, 10:00:00 (2012-02-13UTC10Z) UTC[1]
RocketVega
Launch siteKourou ELV
ContractorArianespace
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude302 kilometres (188 mi)
Apogee altitude1,089 kilometres (677 mi)
Inclination69.47 degrees
Period98.54 minutes
Epoch31 October 2013, 04:52:30 UTC[2]

The satellite is a Cubesat, the name given to a series of nano-satellites developed as part of student projects. The ROBUSTA mission is to check the deterioration of electronic components, based on bipolar transistors, when exposed to in-flight space radiation. The results of the experiment will be used to validate a new radiation test method proposed by the laboratory.[4]

Implementation of the project

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The duration of the ROBUSTA project is 6 years, beginning in 2006. The satellite was launched on 13 February 2012 on the Vega rocket's maiden flight,[5] and reentered in the atmosphere in February 2015. An anomaly within the battery recharge system resulted in the loss of the satellite after a few days.[6]

Staff

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Teams from several sites, coordinated by the Centre Spatial Universitaire Montpellier-Nîmes worked together.[7] These teams are spread over several sites:

References

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  1. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  2. ^ Peat, Chris (31 October 2013). "ROBUSTA – Orbit". Heavens Above. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  3. ^ CNES official page for the project https://robusta.cnes.fr/en/ROBUSTA/index.htm Archived 2017-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Boch, Jérôme; Gonzalez Velo, Yago; Saigne, Frédéric; Roche, Nicolas J.-H.; Schrimpf, Ronald D.; Vaille, Jean-Roch; Dusseau, Laurent; Chatry, Christian; Lorfevre, Eric; Ecoffet, Robert; Touboul, Antoine D. (2009). "The Use of a Dose-Rate Switching Technique to Characterize Bipolar Devices". IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science. 56 (6): 3347–3353. Bibcode:2009ITNS...56.3347B. doi:10.1109/TNS.2009.2033686. S2CID 20001729.
  5. ^ "Robusta-1A". Archived from the original on 2015-07-10. Retrieved 2015-07-09.
  6. ^ On the (now defunct) ROBUSTA website : https://web.archive.org/web/20130814173904/http://www.ies.univ-montp2.fr/robusta/satellite/
  7. ^ "Fondation-va.fr". Archived from the original on 2015-07-10. Retrieved 2015-07-09.