MIR-SAT1

MIRSAT-1, Mauritius Imagery and Radiocommunication Satellite 1

Satellite technology has come a long way since the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957. Since then, advances in technology have made satellites much more accessible, leading to thousands of artificial satellites orbiting the earth today. Satellites have become an important part of our everyday life, facilitating telecommunications, weather forecasting, oceanographic explorations, among others. Furthermore, Satellite/Space Technology has led to major advancements in a number of fields including medicine, agriculture, astronomy and surveillance, amongst others. Mauritius, as a SIDS, currently benefits from numerous services provided by satellites.

The Mauritius Research and Innovation Council (MRIC), operating under the aegis of the Ministry of Technology Communication and Innovation and mandated by the Government of Mauritius to promote Science Research, Technology and Innovation in the Republic of Mauritius, envisages embarking into a new initiative geared towards exploring the potential of space/satellite technology for the socio-economic benefit of the Country. As a first attempt towards this aim, a team led by the MRIC submitted a proposal entitled the MIR-SAT1 under the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) KiboCUBE Programme 2018. The UNOOSA/JAXA KiboCube Program provides developing countries opportunities to embark into space activities with an ultimate objective to build national capacity in space technology.

The Mauritian proposal MIR-SAT1 was the winner of the KiboCube in June 2018 and consequently Mauritius was offered the opportunity, for the first time in its history, to build and deploy a Mauritian NanoSatellite (1U CubeSat) from the International Space Station (ISS) Japanese Experiment Module (Kibo) on a Low Earth Orbit (~410-420km). The MRIC also benefited from the collaboration of AAC-Clyde (UK), expert in nanosatellite technologies. The MIR-SAT1 will collect images of the Republic of Mauritius and its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) using an onboard camera.

The data from the satellite are being collected by the main ground station at the MRIC. Secondary receiving ground stations built by university students and schools are also collecting telemetry data. Data collected from the satellite will be used for capacity building, advanced research and innovation in areas pertinent to national problems. The deployment of MIR-SAT1 on orbit via the KIBO arm of the International Space Station was done on the 22nd June 2021.The MRIC organized a full day workshop on the 1st of March 2019 at the Conference Hall Level 1 of the Atul Bihari Vajpayee Tower (CyberTower 1) to disseminate the MIR-SAT1 initiative to the public, in particular, how it will be built and deployed in space and how data will be captured from the satellite.

The MRIC organized a full day workshop on the 1st of March 2019 at the Conference Hall Level 1 of the Atul Bihari Vajpayee Tower (CyberTower 1) to disseminate the MIR-SAT1 initiative to the public, in particular, how it will be built and deployed in space and how data will be captured from the satellite.

Satellite Launch, Deployment & Orbit

Once completed, the satellite was delivered to JAXA in February 2021.

The satellite was launched onboard the SpaceX CRS-22 to the ISS for deployment on 3 June 2021. Deployment of MIR-SAT1 from ISS onto orbit was completed on 22 June 2021.

At the Tsukuba Space Centre, JAXA together with MRIC Team and AAC-Clyde Space carried out verification tests before the satellite was integrated into the J-SSOD. The J-SSOD containing MIR-SAT1 was then shipped to the launch site at NASA Kennedy Space Centre, Florida.

Once in orbit on 22 June 2021, the satellite transmitted its first signals 45mins after the deployment. On same day, at around 16:00hr, the MRIC Control Room received its signals.

Team

Project Phases

This section shows the different phases of the satellite and ground station implementation.

Satellite

Ground Station

Registration

The Ground Control Station

The MIR-SAT1 (Mauritius Imagery and Radiocommunication SATellite 1) project involves the operation of the satellite on orbit for control and manoeuvre, collection of payload data and tests. Mission operation is carried out via the Ground Station Facility (bearing Radio Amateur licence 3B8MRC) which is located on the 6th floor of the Ebène Heights Building in Ebene.

The ground segment consists of all the ground-based elements of the spacecraft system used by the MRIC as operator. The primary elements of the ground segment are:

Ground station, which provides radio interfaces with the spacecraft
Mission control (or operations), from which the spacecraft is managed
Ground networks, which connect the other ground elements (other satellite receiving stations) to one another
Spacecraft integration and test facilities, i.e. Missions Lab (via FlatSat in Clean Compartment)
Future mission design facilities (using Missions Lab)

The ground station equipment includes 1) an antenna system on the roof , and 2) hardware in the control room for reception and transmission of radio signals from and to spacecraft.

The ground station autonomously tracks the satellite and point the antennas accordingly during a pass.

The antenna system consists of:

The antenna system is supported by a lattice structure which has already been erected on site.

The Satellite

The MIR-SAT1 consists of two (2) payloads:

The Satellite

In order to ensure mission success and most importantly safety of the International Space Station, the satellite has to pass a series of tests before being accepted on board the rocket launcher and ultimately ISS.

A satellite is normally subjected to harsh environmental conditions during the launch phase, deployment phase and finally on orbit around the Earth. These tests simulate these conditions and ensure the satellite is properly designed to operate during these phases.