22.04.2017

In April, 18 at 11.11 local time carrier rocket of American consortium United Launch Alliance «Atlas V» was launched from cosmodrome on Cape Canaveral (USA) with transport ship "Cygnus". It's mission is to deliver 7600 pounds of live load to International space station.

Among the equipment that can be found on the board of the carrier is Nano-satellite "PolyITAN-2-SAU" that was made by a group of students and fellow workers of National technical university of Ukraine "Igor Sikorsky Kyiv polytechnic institute" under the guidance of senior research worker of the university Borys Rassamakin.
Nano-satellite has been designed in terms of space program of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv polytechnic institute. It's creation became possible due to the sponsorship of Shenyang Aerospace University (Shenyang city of People’s Republic of China), Kalinin Fund, "Diona" Ltd. and "Boeing-Ukraine Ltd". The name stems from two words – "polytechnic", since it was created by Kyiv polytechnics and abbreviation "technological automatic nano-satellite". Number "2" stands for the fact that second space vehicle has already been built in Igor Sikorsky Kyiv polytechnic institute. First nano-satellite of Kyiv polytechnics "PolyTAN-1" has been performing its space mission for almost one year, transmitting important research data to the flight control center.
«PolyITAN-2-SAU» has been designed for the participation in "QB50" project that is being realized by Belgium institute «Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics». This project aims at demonstrating the launch opportunity and application of a network (cluster) of 50 nano-satellites designed by university teams from all over the world for scientific purposes. They will be performing a series of research tasks in space. However, only 28 vehicles were accepted for space launch due to different reasons. Among them is a nano-satellite of Kyiv polytechnics.
In spring 2016 «PolyITAN-2-SAU» was integrated into launch barrel of «NANORAKS NASA» company (USA) in Delft city (the Netherlands). The same year it was shipped off to the space range in Huston city (USA). It was placed then on the rocket «Atlas 5» that was launched successfully on 18 April.
On 22 April at 13.05 Kyiv time automatic space ferry vehicle “Cygnus CRS OA-7” of Orbital ATK Company that was launched by carrier rocket “Atlas V” into space on 18 April reached International Space Station (ISS). Thus, 28 research nano-satellites that were launched into ISS in terms of “QB50” and among them nano-satellite of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv polytechnic institute “PolyTAN – 2 – SAU” covered first stage of they space journey.
Next one will start after entering each of them into intended near-earth orbit. Nano-satellite of Kyiv polytechnic is expected to enter into autonomous flight as one of twenty space vehicles of “QB50” mission over the next few weeks.
Thus, the space Odyssey of second nano-satellite of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv polytechnic institute has started!