Stuff

    Subscribe to our newsletter

    What's Hot
    Vodacom

    Vodacom launches its ‘Good as New’ refurbished iPhone range

    July 6, 2022
    VS Gaming Weekly

    South African esports gets its own TV show – This is VS Gaming Weekly

    July 6, 2022
    Shanghai

    Shanghai hack sees over 23TB of personal information up for sale

    July 6, 2022
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube SoundCloud
    Trending
    • Vodacom launches its ‘Good as New’ refurbished iPhone range
    • South African esports gets its own TV show – This is VS Gaming Weekly
    • Shanghai hack sees over 23TB of personal information up for sale
    • How Discovery Insure is making people better drivers and saving lives – T2S2
    • Glance is here to absolutely ruin your day. And your lock-screen
    • This is what a 3D-printed lunar base built by autonomous robots might look like
    • Nigeria’s latest lithium find: some key questions answered
    • Asus ROG Phone 6 and 6 Pro models announced, will land in SA (eventually)
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Stuff Stuff
    • News
      • App News
      • Business News
      • Camera News
      • Gaming News
      • Headphone News
      • Industry News
      • Internet News
      • Laptops News
      • Motoring News
      • Other Tech News
      • Phone News
      • Tablet News
      • Technology News
      • TV News
      • Wearables News
    • Reviews
      • Camera Reviews
      • Car Reviews
      • Featured Reviews
      • Game Reviews
      • Headphone Reviews
      • Laptop Reviews
      • Other Tech Reviews
      • Phone Reviews
      • Tablet Reviews
      • Wearables Reviews
    • Columns
    • Stuff Guides
    • Podcasts & Videos
      • Videos
      • Stuffed
      • Stuffing Around
      • Tech Byte
      • T2S2
    • Win
    • Subscribe
      • Print
      • Digital
        • Google Play
        • iTunes
        • Download
        • Zinio
    • Stuff Shop
      • Shop Now
      • My Account
      • Downloads
    • Contact Us
      • Get In Touch
      • Advertise
    0 Shopping Cart
    Stuff
    Home » News » Space News » Watch SA’s MDASat cubesats make it to space onboard SpaceX’s veteran Falcon 9
    News

    Watch SA’s MDASat cubesats make it to space onboard SpaceX’s veteran Falcon 9

    Brett VenterBy Brett VenterJanuary 14, 2022No Comments2 Mins Read
    MDASat Transporter-3 launch
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    South Africa’s MDASat cubesats, intended to watch over the country’s coastline, were safely deployed yesterday. SpaceX’s Transporter-3 mission seems to have gone off without a hitch. But, as remarkable as it is that SA’s got new eyes in the sky, SpaceX’s rocket steals the show.

    The Falcon 9 first stage that took 105 different satellites into space last night also completed its tenth liftoff and landing. Ars Technica reports that this booster alone is responsible for 550 satellites, as well as one Cargo Dragon and one Crew Dragon flight. That’s an awful lot of value from a single rocket.

    Time to make more MDASats




    The entire Transporter-3 launch is available online, if you’d like to see (more or less) SA’s satellites being deployed. Unfortunately, no deployments are actually shown — just callouts of successful separations from SpaceX’s second stage. Equally unfortunately, by the time SA’s MDASat is dropped off, SpaceX’s engineers have switched to techno instead of callouts.

    Still, you can pop over to 1:26:00 on the video, which is about 1:11:00 on the mission counter, and use your imagination, if you like.

    Now that they’re up there, the cubesats developed by the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) have work to do. They’ve been dispatched with a variety of new (for South Africa) features. MDASat-1 includes an improved AIS receiver over the one launched in two previous ZACube missions. The trio of satellites can accept OTA updates, meaning their functions can be upgraded over time using software.

    CPUT’s acting chief engineer, Nyameko Royi, said prior to the launch, “This mission would mark the first constellation of satellites developed and designed in Africa. The more we get people involved in space the better, the more data we extract from space — the better for the world. This is a significant milestone for CPUT and South Africa.”

    CPUT cubesat Falcon 9 MDASat cubesats South Africa SpaceX
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Tumblr Email
    Brett Venter

      Related Posts

      Vodacom

      Vodacom launches its ‘Good as New’ refurbished iPhone range

      July 6, 2022
      VS Gaming Weekly

      South African esports gets its own TV show – This is VS Gaming Weekly

      July 6, 2022
      Shanghai

      Shanghai hack sees over 23TB of personal information up for sale

      July 6, 2022

      Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

      In The Mag
      Stuff June-July 2022 Latest Issue

      In This Issue – The Outdoors (June-July 2022) Issue

      By Brett VenterMay 30, 20221

      Once again, we are asking you to check out a new issue of Stuff Magazine.…

      2021 Wish List
      wish list Stuff Wish List 2021

      Stuff Wish List: for the tech impaired

      By Duncan PikeDecember 22, 20210

      Are you from the time before being glued to a smartphone was considered normal? Here’s…

      Wishlist DIY Stuff tech

      Stuff Wish List: for the DIY Diehard

      December 21, 2021
      Wish List Gearhead

      Stuff Wish List: For the petrol-soaked gearhead

      December 20, 2021
      outsiders

      Stuff Wish List: for the Outsiders

      December 17, 2021

      Latest Video

      Sonos

      SONOS Roam SL unboxing by Toby Shapshak

      March 30, 2022
      Mini Cooper

      The Mini Cooper SE Electric with Toby Shapshak

      March 18, 2022
      MSI Crosshair 15 Rainbox Six Extraction Edition unboxing

      MSI Crosshair 15 Rainbox Six Extraction Edition unboxing

      March 16, 2022
      Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra Unboxing

      Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra unboxing with Toby Shapshak

      March 16, 2022
      Contact

      South Africa's Consumer Tech News Hub

      General: [email protected]
      Subscriptions: [email protected] or 087 353 1291
      Editorial: 072 735 2614
      Sales: 083 375 2418

      Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube SoundCloud

      Subscribe to Updates

      • Terms and Conditions
      • Privacy & POPI
      • My account
      © 2022 Stuff Group. Designed by Chronon.

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.