PASADENA patch Completed

PASADENA

Distributed payload system — femto-satellites deployed from a primary container during sub-orbital flight

Mission Overview

Mission Overview

PASADENA (Payload Architecture for Sub-orbital Automated Distributed ENvironment Analysis) is a distributed femto-satellite system designed to collect atmospheric and ionospheric data across a swarm.

  • Femto-satellite swarm deployment
  • Sub-orbital trajectory
  • Atmospheric sensing suite
  • Open payload interface for partners

Architecture

The primary container (P-SAT) houses 6 femto-satellites (F-SATs), each massing under 10 g. F-SATs are spring-ejected at apogee and transmit sensor data independently before atmospheric reentry.

  • 6 × femto-satellites (<10 g each)
  • Spring-ejection deployment mechanism
  • Independent radio uplink per F-SAT
  • Common PCB platform for payloads

Comms & Networking

Each F-SAT transmits on 433 MHz ISM band using LoRa modulation. A mesh networking protocol aggregates data across the swarm and relays to a ground station via the P-SAT during descent.

  • 433 MHz LoRa radio
  • Mesh networking between F-SATs
  • Ground station uplink via P-SAT
  • AES-128 encrypted telemetry

Flight Campaigns

PASADENA is designed to fly as a secondary payload aboard ICARO or a commercial sounding rocket. The first flight campaign is planned for 2025 in collaboration with EuRoC partners.

  • Compatible with standard sounding rockets
  • Secondary payload integration
  • 2025 campaign target
  • EuRoC partnership

Partner with PASADENA

Universities, research centers, and companies can fly payloads aboard PASADENA. Contact us to discuss mission requirements.

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