Miniature X-Ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS) - A Science-Oriented, University 3U CubeSat

TL;DR

MinXSS is a CubeSat mission designed to measure solar soft X-rays to study solar processes and their effects on Earth's atmosphere, utilizing a compact silicon drift detector technology.

Contribution

This paper presents the development, scientific goals, and technical implementation of MinXSS, a CubeSat with a novel spectral measurement capability for solar X-rays.

Findings

Successful deployment of a miniaturized X-ray spectrometer on a CubeSat

First spectral measurements of solar soft X-rays from a CubeSat platform

Lessons learned for future small satellite solar observation missions

Abstract

The Miniature X-ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS) is a 3-Unit (3U) CubeSat developed at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado, Boulder (CU). Over 40 students contributed to the project with professional mentorship and technical contributions from professors in the Aerospace Engineering Sciences Department at CU and from LASP scientists and engineers. The scientific objective of MinXSS is to study processes in the dynamic Sun, from quiet-Sun to solar flares, and to further understand how these changes in the Sun influence the Earth's atmosphere by providing unique spectral measurements of solar soft x-rays (SXRs). The enabling technology providing the advanced solar SXR spectral measurements is the Amptek X123, a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) silicon drift detector (SDD). The Amptek X123 has a low mass (~324 g after modification), modest power consumption (~2.50 W), and small volume (6.86 cm x 9.91 cm x 2.54 cm), making it ideal for a CubeSat. This paper provides an overview of the MinXSS mission: the science objectives, project history, subsystems, and lessons learned that can be useful for the small-satellite community.