PAN Satellites

Technology demonstration to launch two 3U CubeSats that will autonomously rendezvous and dock in low-Earth orbit.

Outcome: minimal success

• No “infant mortality”
• Near-continuous communications (by implication, power positive) through atmospheric entry in May 2022
• After separation from the LV, telemetry confirmed fundamental health, status, and performance of key subsystems.
• Anomaly
  • A late, uninformed, and unapproved software change made the low-power safe- hold mode a very high-power state.
  • Consequently, when the spacecraft began charging its batteries after separation in safe-hold mode, the power drain caused repeated reboots of the flight computer (a two-fault response scenario).
  • Ultimately, the spacecraft never was able to enter normal mode to demonstrate rendezvous.