Heathkit is thrilled to make our return to the Amateur Radio sector in partnership with AMSAT and Kirkwall through a special Heathkit edition of the AMSAT CubeSatSim.
Designed by Alan Johnston (KU2Y), the CubeSatSim is a low cost satellite emulator that runs on solar panels and batteries, transmits UHF radio telemetry, has a 3D printed frame, and can be extended by additional sensors and modules. Through integration with the Kirkwall IoT monitoring software, this CubeSatSim educator pack builds on the opportunity to learn about satellite communications and Command & Control (C2) with the addition of the comprehensive Kirkwall monitoring platform for any sensors connected to the CubeSatSim through the QWIIC connect system. With applications ranging from university research to space enthusiast and hobbyist builds, users will enjoy the ultimate hands-on educational experience in CubeSat engineering, satellite communications through Amateur Radio, and satellite IoT sensor monitoring.
The first 10 orders will include a real, space-flown fragment of the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia foil that protected Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins as they flew to the moon and back, and will ship the week of 01 May 2025. Subsequent orders will include additional one-of-a-kind space artifacts from flown space missions.
The CubeSatSim has the following features:
- Working solar panels and rechargeable batteries
- Multi-channel voltage, current, and temperature telemetry transmitted in the Amateur Radio UHF band
- Telemetry decoding using FoxTelem software or APRS software
- Payload microcontroller Raspberry Pi Pico and sensors
- Integrated Low Pass Filter
- 3D printed frame and solar panels
In addition to the CubeSatSim, this special Heathkit addition includes:
- 1 historical space artifact from a flown space mission
- 1 Copy of CubeSat Engineering by Patrick Stakem
- 1 Copy of Amsats and Hamsats: Amateur Radio and other Small Satellites by Andrew Barron
- 1 Copy of FM Satellite Communications for Beginners by Brian Schell
- 1 Copy of Hacking Cubesats, Cybersecurity in Space by Patrick Stakem
- 1 Historical NASA space mission pin
- Over 100 historical documents, spaceflight mission planning guides, satellite cybersecurity guides, and CubeSat engineering specification documents to guide the user through preparation for a real CubeSat launch
- A 12-month subscription to the Kirkwall IoT monitoring and security platform to monitor any sensors connected to the platform through the QWIIC connect system.
In preparation for this build, users are advised to have the following tools handy on their respective workbenches:
- Safety glasses (to protect eyes while soldering or trimming leads)
- Soldering iron and solder
- Needle nose pliers (to bend leads and hold parts)
- Side cutters (to trim leads)
- PC/Laptop to flash & setup microcontrollers
- PC/Laptop to setup SD card with ‘cubesatsim’ & 'foxinbox' image
- Blue mounting putty to hold components in place while soldering
- Liquid flux
- Hotglue gun to secure wires to solar panels
- Multimeter for testing solar panels & batteries
Our team is thrilled to offer this package to you as the first of many Amateur radio product offerings to come.
