October 27, 2017 – Houston, Texas – NanoRacks successfully deployed NovaWurks’ SIMPL satellite via the Company’s Kaber Microsatellite Deployer (KABER) from the International Space Station (ISS) early this morning. This is the second Kaber-class deployment that NanoRacks completed this week.
SIMPL went beyond standard satellite deployment from the Space Station. For this program, NovaWurks Inc. pioneered the Hyper-Integrated Satlet (HISat™) technology, a concept to assemble larger satellites from small independent “cells” called satlets. Specifically, SIMPL was delivered to the ISS via NanoRacks in a few larger groups, and then assembled this week by the astronaut crew utilizing some smaller components.
“This was far more than just another satellite deployment for us here at NanoRacks,” says NanoRacks External Payloads Manager, Conor Brown. “For the first time ever a complex satellite was assembled on orbit from multiple satlets launched as separate spacecraft. Thanks to the innovative work of the NovaWurks team and the incredible coordination between our Operations team, NASA, and the ISS crew, we were able to achieve a major milestone towards the future of human and robotic manufacturing of satellites on orbit.”
These NovaWurks satlets can also be combined to form larger satellites or satellite constellations that share power, data, and other resources to perform different tasks.
Thank you to NASA and the Space Station Program Office for their support in this unique technology demonstration and use of the astronaut crew skill set.
To learn more about the SIMPL mission, click here.
To learn more about the NanoRacks Kaber Deployer, click here.
Be sure to follow @NanoRacks on Twitter for continued updates.
About the NanoRacks Kaber Deployer
NanoRacks Kaber Deployment Program allows for a larger EXPRESS class of satellites to be deployed from the International Space Station, up to 100 kilograms. NanoRacks deploys these Kaber-class satellites currently through the Japanese Experiment Module Airlock, and will shift deployments to the NanoRacks Airlock Module when the Company’s commercial Airlock becomes operational (planned for 2019).
About NanoRacks
NanoRacks is enabling space research and in-space services to customers world-wide from multiple platforms and launch vehicles. The company offers low-cost, high-quality solutions to the most pressing needs for satellite deployment, basic and educational research and both at home and in 30 nations world-wide for those new to the industry and aerospace veterans. Since 2009, Texas-based NanoRacks has truly created new markets, and ushered in a new era of in space-services.
In July 2015, NanoRacks signed a teaming agreement with Blue Origin to offer integration services on their New Shepard space vehicle. NanoRacks, along with partners at ULA and Space Systems Loral was also recently selected by NASA to participate in the NextSTEPs Phase II program to develop commercial habitation systems in low-Earth orbit and beyond.
As of August 2017, over 580 payloads have been launched to the International Space Station via NanoRacks services, and our customer base includes the European Space Agency (ESA) the German Space Agency (DLR,) the American space agency (NASA,) US Government Agencies, Planet Labs, Millennium Space Systems, Space Florida, NCESSE, Virgin Galactic, pharmaceutical drug companies, and organizations in Vietnam, UK, Romania and Israel.