Initial Results of the First NSF-Funded Research Experience for Undergraduates on Small Satellite Software

This paper presents preliminary results from the first year of the first National Science Foundation (NSF) funded research experience for undergraduates (REU) with a focus on small satellite software. It begins with a discussion of prior work on the development of an open-hardware, open-source software CubeSat, the OpenOrbiter project and the Open Prototype for Educational NanoSats design, and how this served as foundational work for the REU. A brief discussion of the evaluation techniques used in this program is presented as are the results (which serve as a point of reference for which to compare those from the REU). Next, the REU concept is presented. Third, the results of student participation are discussed. Finally, the results from the REU are compared and contrasted with the results generated from the OpenOrbiter program’s student participation experience during the academic year. The paper concludes with a discussion of future work, including future years of the REU program.

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