Earlier, we reported about an 18 year old boy from Tamil Nadu who was selected for a NASA competition. Rifath Sharook and his team developed the smallest satellite that weighs only 64 grams. The team 3D printed the satellite and named it after Abdul Kalam, ‘Kalamsat.’
Yesterday was the launch of the satellite by NASA from Wallops Island. The launch was a complete success, making a global space record for India.
Sharook spoke to the media and said, “It’s a 3-D printed satellite. It is for the first time that 3-D printing technology is being used in space. We have made history. The world’s smallest satellite has been launched into space. It was not possible without my team.”
The team is part of the Space Kids India in Chennai and the project was done under the supervision of Dr. Srimathy Kesan. Dr. Kesan is the CEO and Founder of Space Kids India, speaking to the media Kesan reported the satellite separated from the rocket 125 minutes after the launch.
Dr. Kesan also added that the satellite will be recovered by NASA and sent back to them to recover the data. She said, “Kalamsat fell into the sea. It will be recovered and NASA will be sending it back to us for decoding the data.”
The satellite built by the team is 3.8 cm cube structure and completely 3D printed. The satellite is equipped with nano Geiger-Muller counter that is used to measure the radiation in space. The complete satellite is made of reinforced carbon fiber polymer.
Dr. Kesan also said, “Space is not unreachable… Space has got no boundaries and therefore, let’s all do research together and let’s conquer Mars soon.”
The Team Celebrating the Successful Launch