Today 2025 December9 (Tue) 01:57 Etc/GMT-9

2026/01/01~2026/01/02

(NET) Electron • PRELUDE & OrigamiSat 2

A Rocket Lab Electron rocket will launch 8 CubeSats for JAXA which were originally planned to launch together with the RAISE 4 satellite on an Epsilon S rocket. The payloads are PRELUDE, OrigamiSat 2, Mono-Nikko, ARICA 2, Kosen 2R, Magnaro II, FSI-SAT 2 and Waseda-SAT 0-II. The mission was switched from Epsilon S to Electron in 2025. Rocket Lab's mission will be named "Kakushin Rising". - MAGNARO II are two small satellites developed by the Nagoya University to demonstrate formation flying techniques. The purpose is to develop a method to achieve resource saving, high accuracy, and formation formation by rotating and separating connected micro-satellites to form a formation, and achieve simultaneous multi-point observation and continuous Earth observation with micro-satellites. MAGNARO is launched as a 3U CubeSat sized package of 4.4kg that splits into two satellites after deployment. One is 2U and the other is 1U in size. They are connected by magnetism until their separation. After separating, they will maintain formation flying between 2km to 500km distance from each other. Amateur radio operators will be able to use these satellites as repeaters for long-range communication. - KOSEN 2R is a 2U CubeSat satellite developed by a partnership between the National Institute of Technology (KOSEN), Yonago College, Gunma College, and other educational bodies. This 2.7kg satellites features a deployable Yagi-style directional antenna which extends after deployment. It is designed to study deformation of the Earth’s crust under the sea floor. It makes use of dual reaction wheels to maintain attitude control. It takes observations using a combination of fish-eye camera lenses and magnetic sensors. - FSI-SAT 2 is a 1U Cubesat developed by the Future Science Institute as a low cost satellite featuring a multi-spectral camera and on-board data processing system. It is designed to demonstrate that this technology can be deployed and operated at this small scale and at low cost. The satellite has a mass of only 1.4kg. - Waseda-SAT 0-II is a 1U Cubesat developed by Waseda University as a technology demonstrator for 3D-printed satellites. Its aim is to have zero fixing screws, zero mechanical parts to be assembled together, and zero debris. This is achieved by 3D-printing the entire chassis as a single element. It will be used to conduct experiments regarding deployment of membrane surfaces which might be used as solar panels for power generation or solar sail for propulsion. The total mass of the satellite is 1.2kg.

📍 Onenui Station, Māhia 4198, Neuseeland