ISISPACE deployers accommodated an impressive 53 smallsats as part of a successful ISILAUNCH34 launch campaign completed aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on January 24 from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral AFS as part of the SpaceX SmallSat Rideshare Program.
For this mission, Kepler Communications had contracted ISISPACE and ISILAUNCH to manage the integration of their smallsats on board the Transporter-1 mission, including interface design and development, deployers, sequencer, and full-service integration support to get all satellites and equipment to the launch site at Cape Canaveral and mated with Falcon 9.
To optimize the number of satellites that can be integrated within the available volume and mass constraints, ISISPACE developed the CubeSat MultiPack (CSMP) and partnered with SkyEnergy to develop a special MultiPack Adapter Plate (MPAP) for that purpose.
The MPAP is designed to accommodate as many as 9 QuadPack deployers as well as the company’s iMDC (Modular Deployment Controller) sequencer to provide a single point interface between the launch vehicle control and telemetry system and the deployers.
ISISPACE’s launch service integration team at ISILAUNCH managed and executed the launch campaign on Kepler’s behalf. With excess capacity for more deployers available on the MPAP, several other customer satellites were integrated on the Transporter-1 mission by ISILAUNCH.
The development of the CubeSat MultiPack also made it possible to support the firm’s long-term customer Planet, with the inclusion of 36 Planet Type 3.XL+ SuperDove smallsats.
The SuperDove smallsats were all integrated into 9 QuadPacks that comprised a very full plate and an amazing sight after integration to the launch vehicle. Another QuadPack with SuperDoves could be included on the other plate, bringing the total number of Planet satellites to the 40 they required to be launched.
Achieving such a milestone directly after celebrating ISISPACE’s 15th anniversary earlier this month stands as another record milestone in the company history.