May 4, 2018 – Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada – NanoRacks is pleased to announce that the Company has been awarded the launch services and deployment contract for the Canadian CubeSat Project – a nationwide small satellite development program sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
The project provides funding to post-secondary institutions in Canada as part of a challenge to design, build, launch, and operate their own satellites which will be deployed from the International Space Station. The contract is for the launch and deployment of up to 15 CubeSats, totaling 33U of deployment volume, representing each Canadian province and territory.
CSA and NanoRacks will provide expert guidance to the professors and students to foster mission success and teach students about all aspects of launching a small spacecraft – from technology development to communicating their work to the public.
“We’re thrilled to grow our relationship with the Canadian Space Agency and the Canadian CubeSat community,” says NanoRacks Account Manager, Ajeeth Ibrahim. “This type of nationwide program emphasizes NanoRacks’ goal of increasing global access to space and enabling the space ecosystem to grow. We look forward to working with CSA and the university teams to help build a successful mission and create a meaningful experience for university students all across Canada.”
NanoRacks deployed the first-ever Canadian CubeSat from the International Space Station, ExAlta-1, from the University of Alberta in May 2017, as a part of the QB50 Mission.
According to the Canadian government website, the Canadian CubeSat Project will provide professors in post-secondary institutions with an opportunity to engage their students in a real space mission. Through this unique hands-on experience, students will learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), stimulating their interest in STEM education and careers. This initiative falls under the CSA’s mandate to foster the continuing development of a critical mass of researchers and highly qualified people in Canada.”
NanoRacks and CSA are targeting two separate launch opportunities for these CubeSats in 2020 and 2021.
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About NanoRacks
NanoRacks is the world’s first commercial space station company with an existing customer base. 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 selected by NASA to participate in the NextSTEP Phase II program to develop commercial habitation systems in low-Earth orbit and beyond.
As of February 2018, over 600 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, Spire, Millennium Space Systems, Space Florida, NCESSE, Virgin Galactic, pharmaceutical companies, and organizations in Vietnam, UK, Romania and Israel.