South Australian satellite Kanyini, has successfully completed its Environmental Stress Screening (ESS) ahead of the satellite’s mid-2024 launch.
The ESS testing verifies the satellite’s ability to withstand the rigours of space by exposing it to the harsh physical and environmental conditions it is expected to encounter over its operational life, and was conducted at the National Space Test Facility at the Australian National University in Canberra.
Fully manufactured in Adelaide's Lot Fourteen, Kanyini underwent two weeks of challenging trials, including exposing the satellite to extreme temperature variations, intense vibrations, and crushing vacuum conditions.
With Kanyini’s full System Integration Review also concluded, the successful testing now sees the mission team embarking on the final manufacturing phase in readiness for launch.
"The Kanyini build is a remarkable example of South Australian space industry collaboration and expertise driving major advances in local capability," said Susan Close, Deputy Premier of South Australia.
"The successful completion of this critical milestone brings us one step closer to realising our mission of seeing home grown South Australian space technologies launched into low Earth orbit. We are excited about the possibilities that Kanyini holds both in terms of building space heritage for South Australian space companies and the information it will provide to benefit our communities and services here in South Australia."
Kanyini will be launched onboard SpaceX’s Transporter-11 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, USA.
Once in orbit, Kanyini’s dual IoT and imager payloads will deliver critical space data to be used by government and research institutions to expand their knowledge, particularly in relation to sustainability and climate impacts.
"Once launched, Kanyini will unlock even more opportunities for research and development of innovative, sovereign Australian technologies," said Kanyini Mission Director Peter Nikoloff.
"The collaborative effort from the whole mission team, including SmartSat CRC and our partners Myriota and Inovor Technologies, as well as the support from the South Australian Government, has been outstanding up until now."
The Kanyini mission is a collaboration between the South Australian Government, the SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre as mission lead, Adelaide-based commercial satellite manufacturer Inovor Technologies, and global IoT provider Myriota.