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USNA "Budget" Satellite Launched and Functioning

Posted by timothy on from the hey-bob-where's-my-metal-tape-measure dept.

Arpad Korossy writes: "Hey, you ran a story on this earlier, and some people expressed doubt whether a sattelite made for a tenth of the usual cost using mostly components from Radio Shack would work; well, it has. The best line in the whole article has to be 'Instead of a $50,000 antenna system, the group used a metal tape measure.""

1 of 190 comments (clear)

  1. Duct tape by __4096 · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Academy students and professors hoped the satellite would work for a month, given that many of the parts they used have no history of operating in space. But since the satellite was launched from Kodiak, Alaska, on Sept. 30, it has shown no signs of degrading, and the group is hoping the satellite will work at least another year and maybe another five.

    Good thing they used the highest grade of duct tape available, eh?