Assembly
Overview
Review Assembly Steps >The FASTRAC mission will require the assembly of two spacecraft, FASTRAC-A and FASTRAC-B, with almost identical components except for portions of the Electrical Power System. The only differences between the two spacecraft are due to the fact that a Planetary Systems Corporation Motorized Lightband (MLB) will be used to separate the two nanosatellites upon reaching orbit. As a result, one satellite must supply the necessary power to the separation system while the other does not have to. In addition, differing geometries of the two MLB rings result in different areas available to solar cells. The figure below shows the two fully assembled nanosatellites side-by-side showing the two different rings of the Motorized Lightband.
The FASTRAC team will assemble the satellites in a specific series of steps. Review the steps by clicking on the link below.