IceCube (spacecraft)

IceCube, also known as Earth-1,^[3] was a 3U CubeSat satellite^[4] funded and developed by NASA.^[5][6] Its goal was to demonstrate and map ice clouds through the use of its 883 GHz radiometer.

IceCube

Deployment of IceCube and CXBN-2 from the International Space Station (ISS)
Names	Earth-1
Mission type	Technology demonstration
Operator	NASA Goddard Space Center
COSPAR ID	1998-067LN[1]
SATCAT no.	42705[2]
Mission duration	1 year, 4 months and 17 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	CubeSat
Manufacturer	NASA
Dry mass	4 kilograms (8.8 lb)
Dimensions	10cm x 10cm x 30cm
Start of mission
Launch date	April 18, 2017 (2017-04-18)
Rocket	Atlas V 401
Launch site	Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 41
Contractor	United Launch Alliance
Deployed from	International Space Station (ISS)
Deployment date	May 16, 2017 (2017-05-16)
End of mission
Disposal	Re-entry
Decay date	October 3, 2018
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Periapsis altitude	401 kilometres (249 mi)[1]
Apoapsis altitude	404 kilometres (251 mi)
Inclination	51.64°
Instruments
883 GHz radiometer

Objectives

IceCube was built to map ice clouds globally. It had a submillimeter radiometer to overcome the limitation of ice particles in clouds being opaque in the infrared and visible spectrums.^[5][7] It was made to demonstrate a 833-gigahertz submillimeter-wave receiver as part of a technology demonstration mission.^[3][4][8]

Design

IceCube was a Sun-pointing spin-stabilized 3U CubeSat with two solar panel arrays. In its compact form, it occupied a volume of 10 x 10 x 30cm.^[9]

Instruments

IceCube had a 883 GHz radiometer allowing the penetration of cloud layers and measurement of ice mass. At 883 GHz, radiation is highly sensitive to scattering allowing it to interact with ice in the clouds.^[9]

Launch and mission

Main article: Cygnus OA-7

Launch of Cygnus OA-7

Cygnus OA-7 launched on April 18, 2017 as the seventh flight of the Cygnus spacecraft to the ISS as under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services program.^[10] The Cygnus spacecraft docked with the ISS on April 2, 2017.^[11]

IceCube was deployed from the ISS via the Nanoracks CubeSat Deployer along with several other CubeSats on May 16, 2017.^[12] It re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on October 3, 2018, ending its mission.^[2]

See also

• Lunar IceCube