<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niwaka</span>

Niwaka

<p><b>Niwaka</b> or <b>FITSAT-1</b> is a 1U <a href="/en/CubeSat" title="CubeSat" class="wl">CubeSat</a> satellite deployed from the <a href="/en/International_Space_Station" title="International Space Station" class="wl">International Space Station</a> (ISS) on 4 October 2012. The Niwaka satellite includes high power <a href="/en/Light-emitting_diode" title="Light-emitting diode" class="wl">LEDs</a> which are driven by 200 watts pulses, allowing <a href="/en/Morse_code" title="Morse code" class="wl">Morse code</a> style communication from the sky to the ground.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-1"><a href="#cite_note-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[1]</span></a></span> FITSAT-1 (Niwaka) communicates with ground by means of 5.8 <a href="/en/Hertz" title="Hertz" class="wl">GHz</a> high-speed (115200 bit/s) transmitter. It also has a 437 MHz (amateur band) beacon and transmitter with data rate 1200 bit/s for <a href="/en/Telemetry" title="Telemetry" class="wl">telemetry</a> downlink.</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Japanese CubeSat satellite</div>
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<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1089065853" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles">.mw-parser-output .ib-spaceflight{width:25em}.mw-parser-output .ib-spaceflight .infobox-header{background:#ddf}.mw-parser-output .ib-edit-wd{float:right}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn"><b>Quick facts: Names, Mission type, Operator, COSPAR ID, SAT...</b> <span class='arrow'>▼</span></header> <table class="infobox ib-spaceflight mobile-collapse-element"><caption class="infobox-title">Niwaka</caption><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span><a href="/en/File:F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg/290px-F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="640" data-file-height="423" data-file-type="bitmap" height="192" width="290" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg/435px-F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg/580px-F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg 2x" alt="F-1_and_other_CubeSats_at_TKSC.jpg"></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">FITSAT-1 satellite in the middle</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Names</th><td class="infobox-data">FITSAT-1</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Mission type</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Technology_demonstration" title="Technology demonstration" class="wl">Technology demonstration</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Operator</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Fukuoka_Institute_of_Technology" title="Fukuoka Institute of Technology" class="wl">Fukuoka Institute of Technology</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/International_Designator" title="International Designator" class="wl">COSPAR ID</a></th><td class="infobox-data">2012-038C (1998-067CP)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Satellite_Catalog_Number" title="Satellite Catalog Number" class="wl">SATCAT <abbr about="#mwt25" typeof="mw:ExpandedAttrs" data-mw="{&quot;attribs&quot;:[[{&quot;txt&quot;:&quot;title&quot;},{&quot;html&quot;:&quot;<span typeof=\&quot;mw:Nowiki\&quot; data-parsoid=\&quot;{}\&quot;>number</span>&quot;}]]}">no.</abbr></a></th><td class="infobox-data">38853</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Mission duration</th><td class="infobox-data">273 days (achieved)<br>100 days (planned)</td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header">Spacecraft properties</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Spacecraft type</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/CubeSat" title="CubeSat" class="wl">CubeSat</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Launch mass</th><td class="infobox-data">1.33<span>&nbsp;</span>kg (2.9<span>&nbsp;</span>lb)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Dimensions</th><td class="infobox-data">10 cm x 10 cm x 10 cm (1U)</td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header">Start of mission</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Launch date</th><td class="infobox-data">21 July 2012, 02:06:18 <a href="/en/Coordinated_Universal_Time" title="Coordinated Universal Time" class="wl">UTC</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Rocket</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/H-IIB" title="H-IIB" class="wl">H-IIB</a> F3</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Launch site</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Tanegashima_Space_Center" title="Tanegashima Space Center" class="wl">Tanegashima</a>, <a href="/en/Yoshinobu_Launch_Complex" title="Yoshinobu Launch Complex" class="wl">Yoshinobu LC-Y2</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Contractor</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Mitsubishi_Heavy_Industries" title="Mitsubishi Heavy Industries" class="wl">Mitsubishi Heavy Industries</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Deployed from</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/International_Space_Station" title="International Space Station" class="wl">ISS</a> <i><a href="/en/Kibō_(ISS_module)" title="Kibō (ISS module)" class="wl">Kibō</a></i><br><small>Delivered by <a href="/en/Kounotori_3" title="Kounotori 3" class="wl">Kounotori 3</a></small></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Deployment date</th><td class="infobox-data">4 October 2012,<br>15:44:15.297 UTC</td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header">End of mission</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Decay date</th><td class="infobox-data">4 July 2013</td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header">Orbital parameters</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Reference<span>&nbsp;</span>system</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Geocentric_orbit" title="Geocentric orbit" class="wl">Geocentric orbit</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Regime</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Low_Earth_orbit" title="Low Earth orbit" class="wl">Low Earth orbit</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Apsis" title="Apsis" class="wl">Perigee altitude</a></th><td class="infobox-data">413<span>&nbsp;</span>km (257<span>&nbsp;</span>mi)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Apsis" title="Apsis" class="wl">Apogee altitude</a></th><td class="infobox-data">418<span>&nbsp;</span>km (260<span>&nbsp;</span>mi)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Orbital_inclination" title="Orbital inclination" class="wl">Inclination</a></th><td class="infobox-data">51.65°</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Orbital_period" title="Orbital period" class="wl">Period</a></th><td class="infobox-data">93.00 minutes</td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-below"><span>&nbsp;</span></td></tr></tbody></table> <footer class='mobile-collapse-footer mobile-collapse-btn'><b>Close</b> <span class='arrow'>▲</span></footer></div>

<p>The name Niwaka derives from "Hakata Niwaka", which is traditional impromptu comical talking with masks. It is also the old name of the city <a href="/en/Fukuoka" title="Fukuoka" class="wl">Fukuoka</a>, site of the <a href="/en/Fukuoka_Institute_of_Technology" title="Fukuoka Institute of Technology" class="wl">Fukuoka Institute of Technology</a> in <a href="/en/Japan" title="Japan" class="wl">Japan</a> which created the satellite.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-2"><a href="#cite_note-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[2]</span></a></span></p>

<p><a href="/en/WE_WISH" title="WE WISH" class="wl">WE WISH</a>, <a href="/en/RAIKO_(satellite)" title="RAIKO (satellite)" class="wl">RAIKO</a>, FITSAT-1, <a href="/en/F-1_(satellite)" title="F-1 (satellite)" class="wl">F-1</a>, and <a href="/en/TechEdSat" title="TechEdSat" class="wl">TechEdSat-1</a> travelled to orbit aboard <a href="/en/Kounotori_3" title="Kounotori 3" class="wl">Kounotori 3</a> (HTV-3).<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-gunter_3-0"><a href="#cite_note-gunter-3" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 3;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[3]</span></a></span></p>

<p>It reentered in the <a href="/en/Atmosphere_of_Earth" title="Atmosphere of Earth" class="wl">atmosphere of Earth</a> on 4 July 2013.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-4"><a href="#cite_note-4" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 4;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[4]</span></a></span></p>



Niwaka or FITSAT-1 is a 1U CubeSat satellite deployed from the International Space Station on 4 October 2012. The Niwaka satellite includes high power LEDs which are driven by 200 watts pulses, allowing Morse code style communication from the sky to the ground. FITSAT-1 communicates with ground by means of 5.8 GHz high-speed transmitter. It also has a 437 MHz beacon and transmitter with data rate 1200 bit/s for telemetry downlink. The name Niwaka derives from "Hakata Niwaka", which is traditional impromptu comical talking with masks. It is also the old name of the city Fukuoka, site of the Fukuoka Institute of Technology in Japan which created the satellite. 