The Satellite Development Program is the voice for undergraduate spaceflight projects at the University of Maryland, in constant pursuit of an enduring UMD CubeSat presence in space.
The Satellite Development Program (“SatDev”) is a consortium of CubeSat missions and their teams at the University of Maryland (UMD), established in response to growing momentum toward nanosatellite development on campus. It operates with support from the Space Systems Laboratory (SSL) and within the jurisdiction of the Department of Aerospace Engineering.
SatDev’s goals are to document the CubeSat expertise collected by mission teams, advocate for expanded CubeSat development infrastructure, pursue new CubeSat projects, and organize opportunities for interested students to join CubeSat missions.
SatDev’s primary functions are to:
– 1 –Promote transfer of knowledge and cooperation between current and future UMD nanosatellite missions |
– 2 –Build and maintain a technical knowledge repository as reference for future nanosatellite missions at UMD |
– 3 –Connect with faculty and external organizations as a unified body |
– 4 –Secure access to priceless applied experience that UMD students can carry into industry and academia |
SatDev aims to provide access to the tools a mission needs in order to have the best chance of reaching orbit. CubeSat design is still in its infancy at UMD, but SatDev believes that being intentional about preserving the lessons learned and being passionate about promoting involvement are the two best ways to expedite the growth process.
The Satellite Development Program is an educational program first and foremost, focused on providing rigorous, professional, hands-on spacecraft engineering experience. The end-to-end design experience that CubeSat missions provide is a uniquely practical educational tool; a student who has the opportunity to participate in CubeSat development as an undergraduate will be primed to take on complex engineering problems after graduation. To space sector employers, CubeSat experience marks students as the best of the best.