WindCube: A CubeSat Thermospheric Wind Instrument

The key objectives of this project are to understand the effects on the ionosphere and thermosphere from above, meaning solar wind and magnetosphere, and from below, meaning lower atmosphere. The ionosphere and thermosphere are the link between outer space and the Earth's atmosphere. Ionosphere disturbances affect communication and navigation (e.g. GPS) systems. Understanding the solar and lower atmospheric effect on the ionosphere will lead to future forecasting capabilities. The approach we will use to study ionosphere and thermosphere disturbances is to build and launch a 6-U CubeSat called WindCube to measure the thermospheric winds in conjunction with other NASA satellite observations and ground-based data sets. We will use a remote sensing method to measure the wind induced Doppler shift in the airglow emission, which is emitted by atomic oxygen in the thermosphere. The Doppler shift in the wavelength is about 1 in 10 millions for 10 m/s winds, hence this is a very precise measurement, which now can be achieved with the most recent advances in CubeSat technology. CubeSat is the future of the space exploration, and this proposal will open new opportunities to space research, which were only available to much larger and more expensive satellite missions. The WindCube satellite will allows us to characterize changes in the thermospheric winds due to solar activities and atmospheric waves such as tides. The NASA Heliophysics decadal survey states: “Key Science Goal 2. Determine the dynamics and coupling of Earth’s magnetosphere, ionosphere, and atmosphere and their response to solar and terrestrial inputs”. Our project is directly related to this science goal. Specifically, we will address the NASA strategic goal of exploring the physical processes in the space environment from the sun to the Earth and throughout the solar system listed in this funding announcement.

Enabling lower cost innovative remote sensing instrument development from concept through breadboard and demonstration

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.