Seeker

Launch data:

Spacecraft data:

Description:

• Seeker is a NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) program that hopes to demonstrate the core capabilities required for safe external robotic free-flyer inspection of crewed space vehicles. External inspection of crewed space vehicles is a crucial next-step in manned space exploration that will greatly improve astronaut safety and provide unparalleled ability to recover from in-flight anomalies and avoid loss of crew. Apollo 13 and the Columbia disaster are two such examples which would have benefited from the technology that Seeker aims to develop.
• Seeker-1 is a 3U CubeSat that will be deployed from an Orbital ATK Enhanced Cygnus ISS resupply spacecraft following the completion of its resupply mission. The Seeker-1 CubeSat will perform a 60-minute mission consisting of proximity operations around the Cygnus spacecraft. The UT-developed vision system was to be isolated from all other sensors onboard the spacecraft, using only a commercially available camera and state-of-the-art computer vision algorithms to detect the Cygnus spacecraft (or its lack thereof) and compute its relative bearing in a variety of lighting conditions, orientations, and background environments. The measurements taken by the intelligent camera system are then used in real-time in the guidance, navigation, and control of the Seeker-1 CubeSat.

Mission details:

• On Apr 17, 2019 the 10th Antares rocket took off from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops Island, placing Cygnus NG-11 (the S.S. Roger Chaffee) in low orbit at 2053 UTC.
• The NG-11 mission carries a large number of nanosatellites hosted on a variety of dispenser systems.
• The Nanoracks NRCSD-E mission 7 is attached to the Chaffee′s service module.
  with its payloads are:
• Seeker, a 3U cubesat from NASA JSC to serve as an inspector satellite maneuvering in the vicinity of the Chaffee.
• Kenobi, a 3U cubesat from NASA JSC which will remain attached to the NRCSD-E and will relay data from Seeker.
• Was launched from Chaffee (Cygnus CRS-11) on 16 Sep 2019.

External links:

• University of Texas: Satellite Information
• Satellite tracking (n2ya.com): Real time satellite tracking