Dynamic Ionosphere CubeSat Experiment

The Dynamic Ionosphere CubeSat Experiment (DICE) is a scientific mission consisting of two Miniaturized Satellites DICE-1 and DICE-2 flying in formation.[1] The satellites are an unusual 1.5U variant of the CubeSat design for microsatellites. Both satellites were launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in October 2011 atop a Delta II rocket. This was a multi-payload mission with four other CubeSats, AubieSat-1, M-Cubed, Explorer-1_Prime and RAX-2.[2]

The satellites are intended to map changes in the Earth's Plasmasphere caused by Geomagnetic storms.[3]

On board control is provided by a Pumpkin FM430 flight control module containing a Texas Instruments MPS430 microcontroller. Communications are provided by a half-duplex UHF modem with a 1.5 Mbit/s downlink (465 MHz) and 19.2 kbit/s uplink (450 MHz). The satellites carry four Electric Field Probe sensors on telescopic booms, two DC Langmuir probes for detection of ions and a three-axis magnetometer for measuring magnetic fields.[4]

References
  1. Krebs, Gunter D. "DICE 1, 2 (Yahtzee, Farkle)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  2. Graham, William (October 28, 2011). "Delta II successfully launches NPP satellite on behalf of NASA and NOAA". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  3. "Satellite Missions Catalogue: DICE (Dynamic Ionosphere CubeSat Experiment)". eoPortal.org. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  4. Burr, Steven Reed (2013). The Design and Implementation of the Dynamic Ionosphere Cubesat Experiment (Dice) Science Instruments" (Report). Retrieved December 9, 2022.
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