DIY Satellite Platforms: Building a Space-Ready General Base Picosatellite for Any Mission

by Sandy Antunes

Can any hobbyist build a satellite? Our DIY guide steps you through designing and building a base picosatellite platform tough enough to withstand launch and survive in orbit. If you have basic maker skills, you can build a space-ready solar-powered computer-controlled assembly suitable for attaching instruments and rocketing into space.

Genres: Engineering, Science, Technical, Space, Nonfiction

86 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 31, 2011

Reviews

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very pragmatic and realistic about amateur space compared to much of the hype. Wish I had read this before I started dreaming of my own, unrealistic, $1000 launch!

[Sweemeng Ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good intro on how to get satellite and launch it. some info might be outdated now

[Luis Sanchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh

[to'c · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very entertaining and enlightening book. I had no idea how accessible personal satellites (picosatellites) have become! I'm almost tempted to build one! In fact I probably will do so within the next few years. Then set it on a shelf to be launched at my funeral because no way can I afford the launch fees while I'm alive!

That's only partly a joke. Launch fees remain outside the justification realm of my wallet but they are certain to fall. Once they drop into the sub-3K range it'll be a lot more tempting.

But don't take my word for it. Read this book if you have even the slightest interest in space. Mr. Antunes covers a wide variety of topics pertinent to satellites and other hobby electronics. It's a light read and chock full of information.

And you might just get the but and have your own space toy someday…

[Phil Moyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This entire series, on building do-it-yourself satellites, is a great introductory set for people considering building CubeSats or other small satellite systems. You really need the entire series, though, rather than reading one or two of them, to get the full picture. Also, these are pretty short books, so they don't cover everything you need to know. For example, there's little/no information on sources for parts. And nothing about programming the systems or doing the actual PC/104 hardware design.

[Brandon Cole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. It really makes me want to start looking into building my own satellite and finding out if one day I could send it to space.

[Mark PhD · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool. Should I ever need to send something into the stratosphere, this will be the way I do it.