Demand for compact, lightweight satellites that are cheap to produce is growing fast. Satellites the size of a carton of milk, or CubeSats as they are known, are now an integral part of the space industry. These satellites are used for gathering data about the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, for example, or for taking photos. However, small satellites can be vulnerable, especially the on-board equipment they carry. TNO has been leading the development of a technology (‘smart structures’) within the EU funded PEASSS project, which measures the deformation of the satellite and is able to correct this in space.
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