NANOSTAR trained students with a high level of skills in Space and project engineering, so that they are the future main players in the field of nanosatellites.

The challenge of the project was to provide students with the experience of a real space engineering process that includes all stages, from conception and specifications, to design, assembly, integration, testing and documentation.

Main objectives

Nanostar is a training programme which aim is to support south-west of Europe students to the design of nanosatellites. To reach this goal, Nanostar developped two complementary activities.

1. Development of a common software available in all the universities of the partnership. The Nanostar Software Suite supports the hands-on training of all students.
2. Launch of student challenges through all universities involved in the project.

A common methodology liaises all Nanostar activities to ensure the most relevant and smooth completion of the project.

Watch Nanostar outcomes

Nanostar Partnership

Associated partners

Workpackages description

Students challenges

Multidisciplinary teams of 5 students engaged in solving design, development and testing challenges:

• February – May 2019: Space Mission Predesign Challenge, first edition. Student teams from all universities compete to create the best preliminary design of a Moon-flyby CubeSat mission according to a given set of requirements. Winners receive an award and are tasked with the systems engineering of the rest of the mission.
• September 2019 – January 2020: Space Mission Predesign Challenge, second edition. This NANOSTAR challenge consists in predesigning a nanosatellite that will perform an ambitious scientific mission. The goal of the mission is to verify the survivability in space of a marine photosymbiotic species of worms (Roscoff worms), which may one day play an essential role in the creation of artificial ecosystems for deep space exploration missions. The scientific payload will monitor the metabolism of the worms and their efficiency for urea and air recycling via video observations and measurements.Student teams must create a preliminary design of a complete space system to achieve this mission, using the tools and methodology provided by NANOSTAR.
• October 2019 – March 2021: Detailed Design and Test Challenges. In this phase, the specific design, development and testing challenges start. Each institution will be offering specific challenges on the design, development and testing of nanosatellite components. Some of these challenges will be related to components of the winner nanosatellite design of the first preliminary design competition (lunar fly-by), others to nanosatellite testing facilities and there will also be a challenge on the detailed design of a roscoff worms payload, considered in the second edition of the preliminary design competition.

The 2 preliminary mission predesign competitions were a unique competitive test bench for the proposed software tools and “fueled” some of the specific challenges.

The specific challenges represented a great chance for the consortium to improve the know-how in specific technology fields.

Student deliverables were evaluated (and winners announced) by a dedicated NANOSTAR jury panel.

Each student received, at least, a participation diploma. Local and consortium prizes for winners.

The challenges final event was organised on May, 11th 2021. The best ten students teams had the opportunity to pitch their project in front of all Nanostar consortium. The winners were announced during the Academy showcase-Final event.

The Nanostar Software Suite (NSS)

Objectives of NSS for the Nanostar project:

Develop a set of integrated open-source tools to aid the mission analysis and preliminary design phases of a nanosatellite mission within a Concurrent Design Engineering methodology.

Those tools would then be used and tested by students in educational challenges along the project.

Watch the Nanostar academy showcase final event