Nayif-1 team members after completion of the assembly and integration of the CubeSat

AMSAT-UK and AMSAT-NL are delighted to now be able to confirm that the Nayif-1 1U CubeSat, which has a full FUNcube payload, is now scheduled for launch on an Indian PSLV launch vehicle at 03:58 UT on February 15, 2017. The flight, PSLV-C37, will be carry a total of 104 satellites into orbit.

UPDATE Feb 14: Nayif-1 TLEs for tracking are at http://download.funcube.org.uk/nayif_tle.txt
Join in the Nayif-1 launch day chat on the FUNcube IRC channel, your reception reports are most welcome, see http://irc.lc/freenode/funcube (If you have a Callsign put it in the nickname field)

The 145.940 MHz 1k2 BPSK telemetry beacon, running 50mW output, should activate  at approximately 04:54 UT on Wednesday, February 15 when the spacecraft is heading north over Mexico and the western parts of the US and Canada.

Nayif-1 was developed by UAE students – Image credit The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre

During the Launch and Early Operation Phase (LEOP) of the mission, the Nayif-1 command team will be headquartered at the American University of Sharjah Ground station in the United Arab Emirates. They will obviously be especially keen to have all possible reports of signal reception during this first orbit!

To encourage everyone to take part, there will be a small prize for the stations that submit the first data to the Nayif-1 Data Warehouse. Please help the team if you can.

Nayif-1 has been developed by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) and American University of Sharjah (AUS). The UAE’s first Nanosatellite was developed by Emirati engineering students from AUS under the supervision of a team of engineers and specialists from MBRSC within the framework of a partnership between the two entities, aiming to provide hands-on experience to engineering students on satellite manufacturing.

Hessa Ali and Maitha Al Shizawi verifying the Nayif-1 hardware as well as conducting electrical and functional tests

The spacecraft includes a U/V linear transponder and telemetry transmitter. It employs enhanced oscillator circuitry and includes an active attitude determination and control system.

As with previous missions carrying FUNcube payloads, AMSAT-UK would very much like to receive as many reports from stations around the world, especially during the first few minutes and hours after launch.

There is a mission specific Telemetry Dashboard for this project and this can be downloaded from http://download.funcube.org.uk/Nayif-1_Dashboard_1038_installer.msi  and, in a similar way to the FUNcube-1 Dashboard, this will be capable of uploading the telemetry received to a central Data Warehouse.

Guidance Notes for the installation of the Dashboard, integration with a FUNcube Dongle and the Data Warehouse have been prepared for the Nayif-1 mission. These can be downloaded from https://funcubetest2.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/nayif-1_dashboard_notes_release_1-0b.pdf

A file to test that the Dashboard and Warehouse configuration are working correctly can be downloaded from  http://download.funcube.org.uk/nayif1_testfile.funcubebin

The Data Warehouse is still under final development but can be viewed at http://data.amsat-uk.org/nayif1/

Please note that if you are already a registered user of the FUNcube Dashboard then you do not need to re-register. Your existing details will transfer automatically to the new Dashboard when you run it for the first time.

The operating frequencies for the spacecraft will be:

Telemetry
145.940 MHz using 1k2 BPSK to the FUNcube standard.

SSB/CW Transponder
Uplink on 435.045 – 435.015 MHz
Downlink on 145.960 – 145.990 MHz

Initial operations of the spacecraft will be in a low power “safe” mode where only the telemetry transmitter is activated.

ISRO PSLV-C37 brochure http://www.isro.gov.in/pslv-c37-cartosat-2-series-satellite/pslv-c37-brochure

Deputy project manager of Nayif-1 Fatma Lootah

Nayif-1 was developed by UAE students – Image credit The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre

The United Arab Emirates newspaper The National reports on the Nayif-1 spacecraft developed by Emirati students from the American University of Sharjah in partnership with The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre.

Nayif-1 carries a 435/145 MHz transponder (FUNcube-5) for amateur radio SSB/CW communications. It is expected to launch along with other amateur radio satellites such as Fox-1C and Fox-1D on a SpaceX rocket between September and November 2016.

Nayif-1 CubeSat – Credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

The National says:

Yousuf Al Shaibani, director general of The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, said the satellite’s development was a testament to its commitment to develop Emirati talent.

“There is no doubt that the field of satellite design and manufacturing is a new industry to UAE universities and students,” Mr Al Shaibani said.

“The Emirati students possess the skills and capabilities to design and build a CubeSat as a result of a knowledge-transfer strategy and cooperation between academic and professional institutions that are launching real space projects, enabling students to see the product of their work as a reality in space.”

The satellite is about 10 cubic centimetres and weighs about 1 kilogram. One of its most notable features is that it is programmed to transfer messages in Arabic.

“This is a great achievement and a source of pride for all of us,” said Dr Bjorn Kjerfve, chancellor of American University of Sharjah.

Watch the insertion of Nayif-1 into the QuadPack deployer

Read the National story at
http://www.thenational.ae/uae/science/first-satellite-developed-by-emirati-students-ready-for-launching

Nayif-1 CubeSat https://amsat-uk.org/satellites/communications/nayif-1/

Nayif-1 team members after completion of the assembly and integration of the CubeSat

The assembly and integration of the Nayif-1 satellite at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was completed on September 4, 2015. Nayif-1 is now being shipped to The Netherlands for final environmental testing.

Emirates Mars Mission Science Team Lead Sarah Amiri ‏@SarahAmiri1 tweeted: “@Nayifone @AUSharjah congratulations on the completion of this milestone”

This video shows the Nayif-1 Antenna Deployment Testing being performed

This mission is intended to provide Emirati students with a tool to design and test systems in space. It is developed by the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) in partnership with American University of Sharjah (AUS). It is expected that this payload will provide a large amount of valuable environmental data from space together with a new, enhanced, amateur radio UHF to VHF linear transponder.

Hessa Ali working on the control system of Nayif-1

The spacecraft will only require simple ground station antennas and an SDR dongle receiver. This will make it uncomplicated for schools and colleges to use with their students.

It is anticipated Nayif-1 will be launched into an elliptical, sun synchronous, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) about 400 by 750 km in late 2015 or early 2016 on a SpaceX Falcoln 9. In such an orbit the satellite passes over the Emirates at least twice a day. This would allow the morning passes to be used for educational purposes and the evening passes for Amateur Radio communications.

The student team will develop and operate a special ground station for this spacecraft. They will also be developing a unique “Dashboard” to display the received telemetry data and greetings messages in Arabic.

IARU coordinated frequencies for NAYIF-1:
• 145.940 MHz 1200 bps BPSK FUNcube beacon
• 500 mW inverting SSB/CW linear transponder
– 435.045-435.015 MHz Uplink
– 145.960-145.990 MHz Downlink

Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre https://twitter.com/MBRSpaceCentre
American University of Sharjah https://twitter.com/AUSharjah
Nayif-1 https://twitter.com/Nayifone

Nayif-1 CubeSat information https://amsat-uk.org/satellites/communications/nayif-1/

Hessa Ali and Maitha Al Shizawi verifying the Nayif-1 hardware as well as conducting electrical and functional tests