Space Science on the Experimental Albertan Satellite #1 (Ex-Alta-1) CubeSat Mission

Cube-satellite (CubeSat) platforms are increasingly being considered for scientific research, with the goal of achieving future constellation class missions for studies of geospace. We describe the design, validation, test, and initial on-orbit results from the University of Alberta Experimental Albertan Satellite #1 (Ex-Alta-1) Cube Satellite, launched in 2017 from the International Space Station as part of the QB50 constellation mission. The payload includes a miniature, low-mass, low-power, and low-magnetic noise boom-mounted fluxgate magnetometer flown, a multi-needle Langmuir Probe, and a radiation dosimeter. The miniature magnetometer achieves a magnetic noise floor of 150-200_pT/μHz at 1_Hz, consumes 400_mW of power, has a mass of 121_g (sensor and boom), stows on the hull, and deploys on a 60_cm boom from a three-unit CubeSat reducing the noise from the onboard reaction wheel to less than 1.5_nT at the sensor. The magnetometer's capabilities are being demonstrated and validated in space with flight on Ex-Alta-1 with a view to its use for monitoring plasma waves at high resolution for space science, magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling, and space radiation studies. We present on-orbit data from the magnetometer boom-deployment and initial operations of the fluxgate sensor and illustrate the potential scientific returns and utility of using CubeSats carrying such fluxgate magnetometers to constitute a magnetospheric constellation mission. We further present results from the dosimeter which characterises the radiation from the low Earth orbit of the Ex-Alta-1 CubeSat.