The AeroCube 16 A & B mission by The Aerospace Corporation consists off two 6U CubeSats hosting a number of advanced materials experiments.
Technical data from AeroCube-16, including results from this experiment, will be used to validate ground test data and inform future research.
A payload will be Flashlight, which is two lasercomm payloads that will demonstrate an optical comm link between CubeSats in LEO orbit. The goal of this projectis to transfer at least 50 Mbps of data while the two spacecraft are 500 km apart. The payloads should be no larger than 2U and less than 2 kg, and will have independent mirror pointing with Fast-Steering Mirror to improve performance over body pointing.
| Nation: | USA |
|---|---|
| Type / Application: | Technology |
| Operator: | The Aerospace Corporation |
| Contractors: | The Aerospace Corporation |
| Equipment: | |
| Configuration: | CubeSat (6U) |
| Propulsion: | |
| Power: | Solar cells, batteries |
| Lifetime: | |
| Mass: | |
| Orbit: |
| Satellite | COSPAR | Date | LS | Launch Vehicle | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AeroCube 16A (AC 16-A) | 2024-053C | 21.03.2024 | WI LA-0C | Electron KS | with USA 352, AeroCube 16B, Mola | |
| AeroCube 16B (AC 16-B) | 2024-053D | 21.03.2024 | WI LA-0C | Electron KS | with USA 352, AeroCube 16A, Mola |
