Nautilus - Navigation in Space

Introducing #CubeDynA: ADCS Testing for CubeSats🔍✅ After two years of intense work, in September 2024, the CubeDynA facility was successfully installed at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) of the European Space Agency - ESA 🛰️.  The CubeDynA facility, developed through the collaboration between Nautilus - Navigation in Space and the Microsatellites and Space Microsystems Laboratory of the University of Bologna (Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna), enables closed-loop testing of CubeSat Attitude Determination and Control Systems (ADCS). It recreates the conditions that influence satellite attitude dynamics in space, allowing for highly accurate simulations. Key features include: ✅ Capability to test CubeSats ranging from 1U to 12U with minimal residual torque (as low as 10^-5 Nm)  🌍 Simulation of the Earth’s magnetic field, solar radiation flux ☀️, and Earth’s albedo  🔭 Real-time ground truth attitude estimation, usable for surrogate star tracker measurements    CubeDynA enables both functional and performance closed-loop ADCS testing, enhancing the performance and reliability of CubeSat missions. The work began with the facility’s design and culminated in its commissioning at ESTEC, including training ESA personnel in its use. 🆕 But that's not all: an enhanced version of CubeDynA, capable of supporting CubeSats up to #16U, is coming soon!   Special thanks go to Alessandro Lotti, Andrea Curatolo, Daniele Pecorella, Giacomo Curzi for their dedication and hard work on this project.   #CubeSat #ADCS #ESA #SpaceTechnology #SatelliteTesting #SatelliteSystems #ClosedLoopTesting

🚀 Hello from Day 4 at IAC 2024! What an amazing journey it's been so far at #IAC2024! The atmosphere is buzzing with innovation, and we already had the pleasure of connecting with so many brilliant minds! A huge thank you to everyone who's stopped by booth MC-03-07. Your enthusiasm and insights have truly made this event special. For those we haven't met yet, we'd love to connect. 📅 Click here to secure a meeting with us https://lnkd.in/dKJ_tgZD

🚀 The wait is over, #IAC2024 is about to begin! This October, the global space community gathers at IAC 2024 in Milan. We are proud to be part of this iconic event and invite you to visit us at booth MC-03-07, where we'll be showcasing: • 𝐅𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 (𝐅𝐃𝐚𝐚𝐒): Our turnkey solution covering every mission phase, from design to operations. • 𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐎: Our brand-new Flight Dynamics software designed to support LEO, MEO, GEO, lunar, and deep space missions. • 𝐎𝐧-𝐁𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬: Our innovative R&D projects for enhanced spacecraft navigation and autonomy. Looking for Flight Dynamics solutions? Book a meeting with us at https://lnkd.in/dKJ_tgZD Many thanks to International Astronautical Federation, AIDAA - The Italian Association of Aeronautics and Astronautics , Agenzia Spaziale Italiana and Leonardo for organizing/hosting the event. Special thanks to ITA - Italian Trade Agency for the hospitality in the Startup Meeting Room. See you in Milan! 🌠

All set for the 2024 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑫𝒂𝒚𝒔 at ESA/ESTEC! Our CTO Alessandro Morselli is ready to welcome you at booth B6 this afternoon. Stop by to discover our latest products and services!😉 Special thanks to Business with ESA and ESA BIC Milan for allowing us to be part of this key event. #ISD2024ESA

🌟 Congratulations to the entire team on this incredible achievement! The video is truly impressive! 🚀🔭 At Natilus, we're proud to have played a role in the precise orbit determination process that contributed to this result. Accurate orbit determination is critical for ensuring that such advanced optical communication links can be established with precision, and it's been a privilege to collaborate on this groundbreaking mission, ALISIO-1. We take the chance to thank Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Open Cosmos and the ESA Operations, Engineering & Space Safety team, in particular Nick Champion and Ruaraidh Mackenzie. Kudos to everyone involved for pushing the boundaries of what's possible in space technology! 🎉🛰️ #ObitDetermination #FlightDynamics #OpticalCommunications #SpaceTechnology #Teamwork

📰 LUMIO MISSION APPROVED BY THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY The European Space Agency - ESA has officially approved the LUMIO mission, led by Politecnico di Milano. After the successful completion of the Phase B in late 2023, the approval of the following phases represents a fundamental milestone for the project. In the next years, the detailed design and the development of the CubeSat will continue during Phases C and D. The Phase E, which foresees the launch and operation of the satellite, is currently scheduled for 2027. The LUMIO mission is framed within ESA’s GSTP and as such it has received support from the national delegations of Italy (ASI), Norway (NOSA), Sweden (SNSA) and UK (UKSA). LUMIO (Lunar Meteroid Impacts Observer) is a 12U CubeSat, where a Unit stands for a cube of 10 cm edge. The mission main objective is to monitor the Lunar far side to detect flashes produced by the impact of meteoroids on the Lunar surface. The spacecraft will reach the Moon after a 3-month transfer along an extremely efficient trajectory. Then, it will move on a “halo” orbit around the Earth-Moon L2 Lagrangian point, which allows a permanent monitoring of the lunar far side. The gathered data will be used to refine the meteoroid flux models hitting the Earth-Moon system. The high frame-rate images acquired by the LUMIO-Cam will be processed aboard and in real time; these will be downloaded on ground for further processing. The European consortium for the LUMIO mission is made of Politecnico di Milano, ARGOTEC , Leonardo, IMT, Nautilus - Navigation in Space, S[&]T Norway, LMO, and ECAPS. The DART Team - Polimi group within Politecnico di Milano’s Department of Aerospace Science and Technology leads the consortium and is responsible for the mission analysis, the guidance, navigation, and control system, the autonomous navigation experiment, the scientific elaboration of mission data, and the management of the project. Argotec leads the CubeSat system design, Leonardo is responsible for the LUMIO-Cam payload design, IMT develops the X-band transponder and the solar array drive mechanism, and Nautilus (a joint spin off company from Politecnico di Milano and University of Bologna) designs the ground segment and the flight dynamics operations. Moreover, S&T Norway will be responsible for the on-board payload data processing unit design to process the data gathered by the LUMIO-Cam. ECAPS in Sweden will design and produce the main thruster of the platform, while LMO in UK will be in charge of the main propulsion and reaction control system design to perform orbital manoeuvres and support attitude control. For further information, please visit the European Space Agency (ESA) website at: https://lnkd.in/eniuVi8C https://lnkd.in/ec6dvFMX Francesco Topputo #DAER #AerospacePoliMi

🚀 Happy to share this great news! The European Space Agency - ESA has approved the next stages (Phases C/D/E) of the Lunar Meteoroid Impacts Observer (LUMIO) mission. 💪Proud to be part of this extraordinary mission!

Day two of the Agenzia Spaziale Italiana workshop (“𝐿'𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑔𝑛𝑜 𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑜 𝑛𝑒𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑖 𝐶𝑢𝑏𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑡: 𝑡𝑒𝑐𝑛𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑖𝑒 𝑒 𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑖 𝑓𝑢𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒”) is underway. The atmosphere is excellent, and the quality of the discussions and presentations is truly impressive. Here's a review of Nautilus contributions to the workshop: 🛰️Yesterday, our co-founder and Attitude Control Expert, Dario Modenini, presented the "𝑁𝑎𝑛𝑜𝐷𝑦𝑛𝐴 - 3𝐷𝑂𝐹 𝑇𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝐶𝑢𝑏𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑡𝑠 𝐴𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝐷𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑙," a project developed in collaboration with the University of Bologna, which is set to revolutionize the ground testing of ADCS for platforms up to 12U. 📅 Today (15:45-16:00), our Flight Dynamics Engineer, Alessio Quinci, will showcase our services for “𝐿𝑢𝑛𝑎𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐷𝑒𝑒𝑝-𝑆𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝐶𝑢𝑏𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑡 𝑁𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛”. This session will highlight Nautilus expertise in deep-space and cis-lunar radiometric navigation, introducing our latest software solutions for Flight Dynamics operations. Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with us and discover more about our innovative services! #CubeSats #SpaceExploration #Space

🚨 New mission klaxon! 📣🔔 🚀👀 The European Space Agency - ESA and its General Support Technology Programme (GSTP) has just approved the LUMIO mission! LUMIO is set to observe meteoroid impacts on the far side of the Moon, aiming to fill the knowledge gap about meteoroid activity between the Earth and Moon. 🛰️💫 So what's the big deal? Here’s some of the questions LUMIO will help us answer: What defensive strategies are needed for future human habitats on the Moon? 🛡️👩🚀 How much damage can these meteoroids cause to equipment on the lunar surface? 💥🔧 Are there really more impacts on the Moon's near side? 🪐📊 Find out more🌟🔭https://lnkd.in/eniuVi8C Shoutout to the consortium making this mission possible👩🚀👨🚀 Politecnico di Milano, ARGOTEC , Leonardo, IMT - INGEGNERIA MARKETING TECNOLOGIA, Nautilus - Navigation in Space, ECAPS, LMO, S[&]T Norway 🌠🔥 Space exploration is getting meteoric!🌍💫 #SpaceTech #LUMIOmission #Asteroids #Innovation #SpaceResearch #SpaceExploratio

🌍 Nautilus proudly signed the Zero Debris Charter, joining over 40 organizations committed to sustainable space activities. Together, we are advancing the mission to minimize space debris and secure a sustainable future for space operations. Learn more about the Zero Debris Charter -> https://lnkd.in/eUsN3bXH 📸 credits: ESA #ZeroDebris