ALMASat-1

ALMASat-1 (ALma MAter SATellite) was a micro satellite developed by University of Bologna for demonstrative purposes to benefit Earth observation missions. The project was funded by Italian Ministry of Research.^[2]

ALMASat-1

Mission type	Technology
Operator	University of Bologna
COSPAR ID	2012-006B
SATCAT no.	38078
Spacecraft properties
Launch mass	12.5 kilograms (28 lb)
Dimensions	30 centimetres (12 in) cube
Start of mission
Launch date	13 February 2012, 10:00:00 (2012-02-13UTC10Z) UTC
Rocket	Vega
Launch site	Kourou ELA-1
Contractor	Arianespace
End of mission
Decay date	25 April 2020
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	311 kilometres (193 mi)
Apogee altitude	1,250 kilometres (780 mi)
Inclination	69.5 degrees
Period	100.32 minutes
Epoch	19 December 2013, 04:49:04 UTC[1]

About the satellite

The satellite was made from high quality aluminium and reinforced with eight stainless steel plates. Solar cells were mounted on four sides of satellite for providing the power required for satellite operation.

Mission

The work on development of ALMASat was started in 2003. It was expected to be launched into orbit on a Dnepr rocket. Later it was launched by Vega launch vehicle with other satellites on board.

The ALMASat-1 was a microsatellite having a cuboidal structure, meant for a demo purpose, it accommodated payloads of different sizes and power requirements. The main purpose of ALMASat-1 was to test the 3-axis pointing accuracy for the future satellite launches.^[3]

Launch

ALMASAT-1 was launched by Vega launch system on February 13, 2012, from Kourou, French Guiana.

Re-entry

ALMASAT-1 decayed from orbit 25 April 2020.