The AIAA Small Satellite Technical Committee (SmSTC) invites nominations for candidates for the fifth annual SmallSat Mission of the Year Award. Nominations must be received not later than Friday, Au g. 2, 2019. Please visit https://tinyurl.com/yxmy2bmn to view a list of suggested nominations or submit an anonymous recommendation. You may also submit your nomination directly to [email protected].

Nominators are encouraged to write in nominees that are not included on the list of suggstions. The following databases may be useful for selecting nominees:  

• https://sites.google.com/a/slu.edu/swartwout/home/cubesat-database
• http://www.klofas.com/comm-table/
• http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sat/cubesat.htm

Kerri Cahoy (L) and Emily Clements (R) present the  2018 Mission of the Year Award to the team from the ASTERIA program at the Small Satellite Conference

The AIAA SmSTC Mission of the Year Award is presented annually to the mission that has demonstrated a significant improvement in the capability of small satellites. Eligible missions must have individual satellite wet mass of less than 150 kg, and must have launched, established communication, and have acquired results from on-orbit after Jan. 1, 2018 00:00:00 UTC. To demonstrate "significant improvement," nominations must show innovation in: spacecraft structural design, scientific instrument development, communications capability, attitude determination and control capability, intersatellite coordination, constellation or cluster management, onboard computing, or other mission aspects. The judges may consider missions with earlier launch dates that had delayed ISS deployments or extensive on-orbit checkout periods, on a case-by-case basis.

 

The SmSTC will generate a short list of finalists based on the submitted nominations. Finalists will be notified and given the opportunity to contribute to their mission description on the voting webpage. Conference attendees will receive an email at the Pre-Conference Workshop with a link to the final voting webpage, where they are invited to vote and rank the finalists. Voting is open to the public (not limited to Conference attendees), and will close at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, Aug. 7. The Small Satellite Technical Committee will then select the winner, informed by the public vote, and will announce the award at the Conference on Thursday, Aug. 8.

To highlight and recognize the efforts and accomplishments of student research projects, the AIAA Small Satellite Technical Committee (SmSTC) is hosting a new student poster competition that will take place during the Pre-Conference Workshop poster-viewing sessions on Saturday, August 3 and Sunday, August 4, 2019. This poster competition is separate from the long-standing Frank J. Redd Competition during SmallSat. The Poster Competition will award certificates and small cash prizes to the top three posters. Students participating in the poster competition are expected to be first author and to be present at their poster during poster viewing times, to engage with the (unidentified) judges. 

Interested Sponsors and Volunteer Judges should contact  [email protected] by 11:59 pm on Thursday, August 1, 2019. Awards will be presented at the Conference on Thursday, August 8.  

Make plans to join JoSS representatives at these events!