Student CubeSat set for launch to support NASA IMAP mission with space weather data collection

by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Nov 07, 2025

A group of undergraduate students from the University of New Hampshire, Sonoma State University, and Howard University have collaboratively designed and built a CubeSat called 3UCubed, now scheduled for launch on a SpaceX rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, no earlier than November 10, 2025.

The small satellite mission is linked to NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) project and will investigate phenomena in the outer atmosphere, focusing on measuring solar wind and particle precipitation.

The 3UCubed satellite aims to collect measurements on atmospheric oxygen density and electron precipitation in the thermosphere, an orbital region shared by the International Space Station and other satellites. Students are expected to analyze these results in combination with NASA IMAP mission data to improve forecasting of space weather and strategies for protecting infrastructure such as communication networks, GPS, and power grids from solar flare events.

Seventy undergraduate students contributed to the five-year development effort, which saw participants writing flight and instrument software, conducting trade studies, selecting vendors, and assembling subsystems for the CubeSat. Mentorship was provided by university staff and professors during the project.

The full assembly and instrument calibration took place at UNH, with flight software developed at UNH and ground station software led by Sonoma State University. SSU's primary ground station will receive mission data and manage spacecraft commands, while a backup system was built at Howard University.

Alex Chesley, one of the student participants at UNH, highlighted involvement in mechanical design for the satellite and its altitude control specification. Chesley now works as a configuration engineer in the aerospace sector, reflecting the career opportunities such projects enable. Haley Joerger from SSU underscored the technical and personal growth achieved working on CubeSat hardware and through project mentorship.

Sonoma State University students also collaborated with regional amateur radio operators and Scouts to construct a ground station for communications with the satellite.

Related Links
University of New Hampshire
Microsat News and Nanosat News at SpaceMart.com