The first launch of Ariane 6, which will place the ISTsat1 into orbit, is scheduled for the 9th of July between 6 PM and 9 PM (Portugal time). The event will be broadcast publicly on the television in the atrium of the Informática II building.

The satellite was developed by students from various Técnico courses as part of the European Space Agency's Fly Your Satellite program. Its mission is to evaluate the use of small satellites for the reception and processing of ADS-B signals emitted by aircraft, allowing their tracking with a broader geographical coverage than currently possible with ground stations.

The project involved, among others,  Master's students Luís Pereira (METI), whose dissertation focused on decoding the ADS-B signals received by the satellite, and Luís Ramos and Rafael Branco (both from MEIC), whose dissertations are related to the development of the software for the ground stations that will monitor the satellite's operation.

The three dissertations are available at:

• Luís Filipe Brás Pinto Pereira

https://fenix.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/cursos/merc/dissertacao/1972678479054896

• Luís Tavares de Ornelas Monteiro Ramos

https://fenix.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/cursos/meic-t/dissertacao/1691203502343476

• Rafael Paixão Branco

https://fenix.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/cursos/meic-t/dissertacao/1128253548923149

(images: ESA)