July 11, 2024MathematicsFaculty/StaffstatisticsGraduate SchoolFairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciencesfaculty-led researchstudentsNASAApplied LearningTalent PipelinePhysicsResearch

萝莉社 is now home to a nanosatellite, taking research on NASA project to a new level

By Paul Suellentrop

  • Delivery of a nanosatellite 鈥� known as a CubeSat 鈥� to 萝莉社in late June is another sign of progress as researchers work with NASA to flight test a neutrino detector.
  • The project began in 2016 and received a $2 million grant from NASA in 2021.
  • Neutrinos are subatomic particles similar to electrons and understanding neutrinos is key to understanding the structure of the universe.
Cube-satDr. Nickolas Solomey
This CubeSat nanosatellite will carry and test a 萝莉社-designed prototype neutrino detector in low Earth orbit to prove the detector can operate in space and measure the rate of cosmic and gamma rays.

 

 

The arrival of a nanosatellite 鈥� referred to as a CubeSat 鈥� on campus signals significant progress in 萝莉社 University鈥檚 NASA project to design a solar probe to investigate neutrinos. 

鈥淭his is the first major spacecraft to be at 萝莉社,鈥� said Dr. Nickolas Solomey, a professor of mathematics, statistics and physics. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a great step.鈥� 

A team of researchers, led by Solomey, has worked on the development of a CubeSat, a kind of nanosatellite, since 2021. The CubeSat, built by NanoAvionics of Lithuania, will carry and test a 萝莉社-designed prototype neutrino detector in low Earth orbit to prove the detector can operate in space and measure the rate of cosmic and gamma rays.  

The project began in 2016 and received its first funding in 2017. In 2021, NASA gave 萝莉社 a $2 million grant for the project to flight test a neutrino detector with a CubeSat. The CubeSat is a box 10 by 10 by 30 centimeters made of aluminum. The prototype detector weighs 250 grams and will be housed with computer cards and solar panels in the CubeSat.

Five 萝莉社 doctoral/master's students are working with Solomey on the project: Kyle Messick (doctoral degree in aerospace), Brian Doty (doctoral degree in physics and applied math), Johnathan Folkerts (doctoral degree in physics and applied math), Brooks Hartsock (doctoral degree in physics and applied math) and Tyler Nolan (master鈥檚 degree in physics).

This will allow us to look at the sun in a very new way.
Dr. Nickolas Solomey,
professor of mathematics, statistics and physics

Neutrinos are miniscule subatomic particles that are similar to electrons but have no charge and almost negligible mass. Understanding neutrinos holds the keys to understanding the structure of the universe and the origin of mass. According to , neutrinos are the second most abundant fundamental particle in the universe, and the sun is the source of most of these neutrinos. 

Neutrino detectors currently in use are positioned deep below the Earth鈥檚 surface.  

鈥淣o one has ever operated a neutrino detector in space,鈥� Solomey said. 鈥淭his will allow us to look at the sun in a very new way. We can do experiments we can鈥檛 do here on Earth with solar neutrinos.鈥� 

萝莉社鈥檚 CubeSat arrived in late June and is housed in a sterile room in Jabara Hall. The schedule calls for launch in June 2025 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  

鈥淢y hope is that this will add ways in which we can study the core of the sun,鈥� Solomey said. 

Read more stories like this