GeneSat-1 is a NASA fully automated, CubeSat spaceflight system that provides life support for bacteria E. Coli K-12. The system was launched into orbit on 16 December 2006, from Wallops Flight Facility.[1] GeneSat-1 began to transmit data on its first pass over the mission’s California ground station.
The nanosatellite[2] contains onboard micro-laboratory systems such as sensors and optical systems that can detect proteins that are the products of specific genetic activity. Knowledge gained from GeneSat-1 is intended to aid scientific understanding of how spaceflight affects the human body.[3]
Weighing 4.6 kilograms, the miniature laboratory was a secondary payload on an Air Force four-stage Minotaur 1 launch vehicle that delivered the Air Force TacSat-2 satellite to orbit. In the development of the GeneSat satellite class (at a fraction of what it normally costs to conduct a mission in space), Ames Research Center (Small Spacecraft Office) collaborated with organisations in industry and also universities local to the center. It is NASA’s first fully automated, self-contained biological spaceflight experiment on a satellite of its size.
References
- ^ “Mission Overview: GeneSat-1”. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Archived from the original on 14 November 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ David, Leonard (30 August 2005). “GeneSat-1: Small Satellite Tackles Big Biology Questions”. Space.com. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
- ^ “GeneSat 1”. NASA. 21 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
External links
- A list from the NASA database retrieved 08:55(UTC) 24 October 2011
- GeneSat-1 mission dashboard Santa Clara University Robotics Systems Laboratory retrieved 08:19 24.10.2011