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A nano-satellite built by Israeli high school students was launched to the International Space Station on April 18. Named for Israel’s national bird, the Duchifat-2 (in English, Hoopoe-2) nano-satellite was one of 28 student-built nano-satellites sent into space, to be released from the space station in about six weeks’ time.
More than 80 Israeli teenagers from around the country – in grades 9-12 – came to Herzliya Science Center to help build the tiny 1.8 kilogram (4-pound) CubeSat satellite, a type of miniaturized satellite for space research.
It is the only QB50 nano-satellite constructed by high school students. The others were developed by college students.
Measuring just 20x10x10 centimeters, Duchifat-2 was launched aboard an Atlas V supply rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The mini satellite is part of a larger project run by the European Union’s QB50 thermosphere research programme. Teams from 21 countries built the nano-satellites “to perform first-class science in the largely unexplored lower thermosphere.”
One of the goals of the QB50 program is to enable space agencies to pursue on-site measurements in the lower thermosphere, which previously haven’t been done because the cost would be too high. A network of very low-cost CubeSats is hoped to make this possible for the first time.
“Duchifat-2 is not only an educational venture that brings space closer to youth and lays the way for tomorrow’s generation; it is also an international research project,” Science Minister Ofir Akunis said. “This is Israeli pride for the future generation, and an opportunity to increase public awareness about space.”
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