ZACube-2 Satellite Naming Competition

Cubesats are extremely small satellites, in the form of 10 cm cubes and with a mass of up to 1 kg (although there are some made up of two or three such cubes). Developed originally in the US, they are becoming increasingly popular with universities and technological institutes around the world, because of their considerable educational benefits. These tiny satellites have come a long way since Sputnik, the first satellite that was launched in 1957, weighing 83 kg. The success of the CubeSat programme has revolutionised space technology.

Cubesats provide both hands-on experience for engineers and technologists in their design and construction, and, once in orbit, the data needed to support scientific experiments and projects.

ZACube-2 will monitor the movement of ships along the South African coastline with its automatic identification system (AIS) payload. The AIS navigational data will be provided to the South African Government in support of its broader Operation Phakisa initiative to grow our maritime economy. The satellite also carries a camera that will detect veld fires from space.

ZACube-2 was designed and built mainly by postgraduate students at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) in conjunction with SANSA as part of the CubeSat programme.