Mission Operations

CTS-SAT-1 mission operations are carried out by members of the CalgaryToSpace team, as well as Dr. Burchill's research group.

Mission operations encompass the planning and execution of telecommand scheduling, operating the satellite during overpasses, system commissioning (especially of the ADCS), and decisions related to scientific data collection.

Satellite Identity

• NORAD ID: 69015
• International Designator (COSPAR ID): 26100AM or 2026-100AM
• Registered Satellite Name: FRONTIERSAT
• SatNOGS Satellite ID: GGCH-4346-1583-9419-5634

Milestones

Timestamps are generally +/- 15 minutes, especially for actions completed during overpasses. Most UTC timestamps are derived precisely from SatNOGS data. This list includes events that range from fun (see: first emoji downlinked) to exciting (see: first image captured) to brutally honest (see: first filesystem anomaly).

Above all, this list aims to capture general power and orbit-affecting events explicitly, in an aim to assist LEO deorbit model development research. We aim to accurately capture every ADCS actuator operation performed (i.e., operations which affect the satellite's drag properties).

• 2026-05-03 01:00 -06:00 - The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying FrontierSat launched. The CAS500-2 mission, a rideshare with 45 satellites total, was SpaceX flight #635.
  • FrontierSat was manifested by ExoLaunch (our wonderful launch provider). ExoLaunch manifested 24 out of 45 payloads/satellites on this Falcon 9 mission.
• 2026-05-03 02:17:19 -06:00 - FrontierSat was deployed and powered on.
  • Timestamp derived based on EPS uptime from first received beacon packet via SatNOGS.
• 2026-05-03 03:44:11 -06:00 - First beacon observed via the SatNOGS network. FrontierSat confirmed operational on-orbit.
• 2026-05-10 11:59 -06:00 - First successful telecommand uplinks.
• 2026-05-10 12:32 -06:00 - More successful telecommand uplinks. Successfully set the message in the beacon packets to "Happy Mother's Day from CTS FrontierSat". Successfully synced the satellite's time via radio telecommand.
• 2026-05-11 12:13 -06:00 - Used a telecommand to reboot the EPS in attempt to fix the battery/solar panel reporting glitch.
• 2026-05-22 11:52 -06:00 - Enabled ADCS power for the first time, and stored angular rates to a file.
• 2026-05-24 06:37:45 -00:00 - First telecommand response downlink received via SatNOGS.
• 2026-05-26 12:11 -06:00 - Installed the T/R Switch PCB, Rev 1 in the control room and successfully uplinked command(s) through it.
• 2026-05-28 22:40:57 -00:00 - Beginning of intentionally downlinking tons of command responses (>100) to validate the capabilities of the SatNOGS network. Downlinked many copies of EPS data, root filesystem listing, ADC battery voltage read, and ADCS identification.
• 2026-05-30 20:24:36 -00:00 - First BULK_FILE_DOWNLINK-type packet downlink (and received by SatNOGS). Packet contained initial ADCS commissioning data from 2026-05-22.
• 2026-05-30 15:28 -06:00 - ADCS file decoded. Initial angular rates, as of 2026-05-22, were approximately 1 degree/second, as measured by the rate sensors, or 0.1 degree/second measured in the "approximate" telemetry request. The rate sensors are presumably more accurate.
• 2026-05-30 23:53 -06:00 - Requested ADCS coarse sun sensor values for the first time, alongside EPS solar panel power data. Received data wasn't too useful yet, but
• 2026-05-31 07:09:10 -00:00 - First LOG_MESSAGE-type packet downlinked (and received by SatNOGS) after enabling the radio log sink.
• 2026-05-31 08:42:21 -00:00 - First LOG_MESSAGE packet containing an emoji downlinked.
• 2026-05-31 12:09 -06:00 - Uplinked telecommand to switch to the HSE (High-Speed External) clock on the OBC, which enables more accurate timekeeping. Subsequent logs and telecommand responses indicate the switch was successful, and that time syncs with the EPS are occuring less frequently than before (i.e., OBC timekeeping is more accurate).
• 2026-06-01 05:38:53 -00:00 - Confirmed the firmware's SHA256 hash is correct (matches the sat-1-rc3 tag's comments) in orbit for the first time. We can now be confident that any potential bitflips in the firmware occurred after this point in time.
• 2026-06-01 06:27:40.546 -00:00 - First camera image captured into camera/2026-06-01_capture.img (with associated execution record camera/2026-06-01_capture.run). Not downlinked until later, but captured. Unknown satellite pointing. Captured using d (daylight) lighting mode. Intention: Confirm the Deployable Composite Lattice Boom (DCLB) survived the launch undeployed.
• 2026-06-01 08:24:50 -00:00 - First filesystem anomaly. While still under investigation as of 2026-06-05 (related PR), bulk file downlink commands started failing with LFS Error Code -12 (NOMEM), suggesting FreeRTOS malloc failures, possibly due to heap fragmentation and/or failure-to-free errors in LittleFS. There were no further symptoms, and a system reboot resolves all issues. The issue appears to surface only after >20 (maybe >50) filesystem operations.
• 2026-06-02 07:05:16 -00:00 - First GNSS timestamp collected to a file (GPS time 2421,198334.004, collected into gnss_data/20260602.gnss). The rest of the GNSS file contains RXSTATUSEVENTA logs from the GNSS with error message "<15% available SVs tracked well".
• 2026-06-05 21:38:19 -00:00 - First GNSS BESTXYZA packet received via SatNOGS! With the satellite still tumbling, reliable GNSS fixes are sporadic. This datum indicates the satellite's speed is 7686.501 m/s.