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        • Bell Curves
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        • The History of Minecraft: How a Swedish Indie Game Came to Dominate the World
        • The Effect of Prozac on the Brain
        • Philae Lander's Discovery of Organic Molecules
        • Advantages and Disadvantages of Wind Turbines
        • Your Own Worst Enemy: An Overview of Lupus
        • The Methylhex Ban
        • The Effect of Lyme Disease on the Immune system
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        • Replacing CFCs
        • The Switch
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        • Determining how Ballparks Affect Batter's Ability to Create Hits
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        • Communicating With Computers
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        • The Nanoscopic War Against Cancer
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        • A Pain That Never Ends
        • Rapamycin Resistance
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        • Morphological Properties of Texting Acronym Formation
        • cGAS and STING Expression
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        • Creating Energy in the Modern World
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        • Earthly Applications for NASA Technology
        • Explaining Relative Motion
        • Exploring Artificial Inteligence
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        • How Leaves Work
        • Hydrogen Fuel Cells
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        • The Science of Microsatellites
        • Sci-Fi Taser
        • Sloane's Gap
        • Sustainable Energy: Why Some Ideas Shine Brighter than Others
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        • The Virus: Our Unforeseen Philosopher's Stone
        • What Are Fuel Cells and How Do They Work?
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations >
        • Astrocytes Expressing ALS-Linked Mutated SOD1 Release Factors Selectively Toxic to Motor Neurons
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        • And Many More...
      • Reactions and Responses >
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    • 2013 Publication

THE SCIENCE OF MICROSATELLITES

Editor's Note:  John F. ('16) wrote a short paper on the science of micro satellites, a topic he finds very interesting. During his research, he was surprised to find that the future of satellite technology is completely different from what he had thought before. 

           Satellites are awesome, we can all agree on that. They allow us to dive into the depths of an unknown entity that surrounds us on all sides. They capture images of events we can only dream of being able to see with our own eyes. They give us insight into a world of darkness that has so much to explore and understand that we will most likely never truly know everything about it. Without satellites, we would have no understanding of how our own Universe works. Thanks satellites!

           Back in September, a historical event for science (and really for our species as a whole) occurred when Voyager 1 was confirmed to have left the solar system. Wow. Just wow. It took thirty-six years for this to happen, and in that time, the spacecraft has become entirely obsolete. As New York Times writer Brooks Barnes wrote: “By today’s standards, the spacecraft’s technology is laughable: it carries an 8-track tape recorder and computers with one-240,000th the memory of a low-end iPhone.” It’s insane to think that a spacecraft with such “laughable” technology has surpassed any current spacecraft and gone out of the solar system. Now 11.7 billion miles from Earth, Voyager 1, which was taking photos of Jupiter and Saturn back in its day, may allow us to discover things in the farthest reaches of the Universe.

           My peer Nomy was fascinated about the fact that what we considered back in the day of Voyager 1 to be “modern,” is now completely obsolete. And in twenty years, what technology we have today will be considered “laughable.” This led me to become curious about what we have planned for the future of satellite technology.

           The interesting thing I discovered was that we aren’t making bigger satellites, we’re making smaller ones. As The New Atlantis says: “a new breed of small, highly mobile satellites geared for non-military use is hitting the scene. These ‘microsatellites,’ in some cases weighing less than 50 pounds each (larger satellites weigh thousands of pounds), offer greater flexibility and control, and can dramatically reduce the costs of simple overflight and reconnaissance tasks.” So instead of focusing on greater technology in these satellites, they are focusing on making them more cost efficient, allowing humans to shoot them out in all different directions, covering more space in the Universe.

           This is totally different tactic than what I had anticipated. I actually had no idea that this is the future of satellites. Before learning this, I imagined massive satellites being shot into space to uncover its truths. But I now understand that we are taking a much different approach to space exploration with satellites. The construction of astronomical technology is not cheap in any way, and creating a giant, futuristic satellite you would expect to see in Star Trek would be insanely expensive for a single country. Maybe some countries could work together to reduce costs, but it would still be a pain. So what we’ve decided to do as a planet is to all focus on the idea of microsatellites.

           When it comes to the exploration of space, we seem to be teaming up. In a world of warfare and hatred, we seem to at least be able to explore the final frontier as a team. As Satellite Today writes: “Small satellites, however, are bringing about major changes to this world order, as an increasing number of developing countries are entering the space sector.” While it makes me happy to know that countries around the world are working together to make cost-efficient satellites so that we can explore more of the Universe, it still makes me sad that I won’t be seeing a jaw dropping, football field sized, mega ultra satellite anytime soon. However, that can wait. Let’s explore space!


Barnes, B. (2013, September 12). In a Breathtaking First, NASA’s Voyager 1 Exits the Solar System. Retrieved from
                http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/13/science/in-a-breathtaking-first-nasa-craft-exits-the-solar-
                system.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&

The Future of Satellites - The New Atlantis. (2003). Retrieved from http://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/the-
              future-of-satellites

Verlini, G. (2011, August 1). The Bright Future of Small Satellite Technology. Retrieved from 
              http://www.satellitetoday.com/publications/via-satellite-magazine/features/2011/08/01/the-bright-future-of-
              small-satellite-technology/

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  • Home
  • Who We Are
  • HOW TO SUBMIT
  • Past Publications
    • 2019 Publication >
      • Scientific Research
      • Mathematical Exploration
      • Scientific Exploration
      • Computer Science
    • 2018 Publication >
      • Artistic Creations
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Exploration
      • Scientific Research
    • 2017 Publication >
      • Artistic Creations
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Exploration
      • Reactions and Responses
      • Scientific Research
    • 2016 Publication >
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations
      • Scientific Research
      • Reactions and Responses
      • Artistic Creations
    • 2015 Publication >
      • Historical and Current Explanations >
        • Bell Curves
        • Birds Vs. Turbines
        • Energy in the Obama Era
        • The Future of Neuroscience
        • Gender Gap in Math
        • GMOs--Yes or No?
        • The History of Minecraft: How a Swedish Indie Game Came to Dominate the World
        • The Effect of Prozac on the Brain
        • Philae Lander's Discovery of Organic Molecules
        • Advantages and Disadvantages of Wind Turbines
        • Your Own Worst Enemy: An Overview of Lupus
        • The Methylhex Ban
        • The Effect of Lyme Disease on the Immune system
        • Infectious Mononucleosis
        • Replacing CFCs
        • The Switch
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations >
        • The 43rd Figure
        • The Clock
        • The Collatz Conjecture
        • Constructing a Soccer Ball
        • Determining how Ballparks Affect Batter's Ability to Create Hits
        • The Rotating Conundrum
        • Pythagorean Puzzle
        • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations
        • Kinetics Lab
        • Math in the Restaurant Business
        • Math as a Vessel for Social Change
        • Sustainability of Bottled Vs. Tap Water
        • Thoughts on the Lottery
        • Understanding Player Efficiency Rating
      • Scientific Research >
        • Communicating With Computers
        • The Mystery of Asthma
        • The Nanoscopic War Against Cancer
        • Phytochemistry
        • Solving the energy crisis with Intermediate Band Solar Cells
        • A Pain That Never Ends
        • Rapamycin Resistance
        • Ampacity of a Single Core Horizontal Cable
        • Morphological Properties of Texting Acronym Formation
        • cGAS and STING Expression
      • Reactions and Responses >
        • Can Humans Survive the Climate Crisis?
        • My Experience as a Teacher's Assistant
        • Ted Talk Responses
        • Teens For Food Justice
      • Artistic Creations >
        • Chandelier
        • Deltoidal Hexacontrahedon
        • Dodecahedron Card Trick
        • Eye of the Triangle
        • Free Radric Delantic Davis
        • The Grid
        • What Does A Randomly Composed Song Sound Like?
        • Science Wing Mural
    • 2014 Publication >
      • Cover Photo
      • Artistic Creations >
        • Art Using the Fibonacci Sequence
        • Computer Generated Architecture and Designs
        • Mathematical Landscape
        • Math Art
        • Math in Music
      • Historical and Current Explanations >
        • Algae Bio-Fuel
        • An Energy Alternative
        • Clean Energy In Transportation
        • Calorie Restriction
        • Creating Energy in the Modern World
        • Dietary Intervention Impact on Gut Microbial Gene Richness
        • Earthly Applications for NASA Technology
        • Explaining Relative Motion
        • Exploring Artificial Inteligence
        • Gamma Function
        • How Leaves Work
        • Hydrogen Fuel Cells
        • Music and Brain Development
        • Programming Calculators
        • The Science of Microsatellites
        • Sci-Fi Taser
        • Sloane's Gap
        • Sustainable Energy: Why Some Ideas Shine Brighter than Others
        • Understanding The Galvanic Cell
        • The Virus: Our Unforeseen Philosopher's Stone
        • What Are Fuel Cells and How Do They Work?
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations >
        • Astrocytes Expressing ALS-Linked Mutated SOD1 Release Factors Selectively Toxic to Motor Neurons
        • Big Bang
        • Dictyostelium Discoideum
        • The Future of Solar Cell Technology
        • And Many More...
      • Reactions and Responses >
        • Alternative Energy Sources, New but Unused
        • An Insight Into the Curious World of Ethnobotany
        • Challenging What We Think We Know
        • The Current State of American Education
        • Discovering New Numbers
        • Interview With an Architect
        • Life of Pi Response
        • Mathematical Art Video Commentary
        • Missing from Science Class
        • The Museum of Math
        • The Inside Scoop on a Real Mathematician
    • 2013 Publication