NASA to develop nano-satellites

NASA to develop nano-satellites

WASHINGTON, April 24 (Xinhua) -- NASA's Ames Research Centerannounced Thursday it will cooperate with m2mi Corp., a California-based company, to develop very small satellites, called nanosats.

"NASA wants to work with companies to develop a new economy inspace," said NASA Ames Center Director Pete Worden. "m2mi has greattechnology that fits excellently with our goals, while enhancing thecommercial use of NASA-developed technologies."

Nanosats are small satellites weighing between 11 and 110 pounds(about 5 to 50 kg). Under the agreement, NASA and m2mi willcooperate to develop a fifth generation telecommunications andnetworking system for Internet protocol-based and related services.

Fifth Generation, or 5G, incorporates Voice Over InternetProtocol, video, data, wireless, and an integrated machine-to-machine intelligence layer, or m2mi, for seamless informationexchange and use.

A large number of these satellites, called a constellation, willbe placed in low Earth orbit for this new telecommunications andnetworking system, according to NASA.

"The constellation will provide a robust, global, space-based,high-speed network for communication, data storage and Earthobservations," said m2mi CEO Geoff Brown in NASA's statement."Nanosatellites take advantage of the significant technologicaladvances in microelectronics and will be produced using low-cost,mass-production techniques."

NASA said that the cooperation will combine its expertise innanosensors, wireless networks and nanosatellite technologies withm2mi's capabilities in software technology, sensors, global systemawareness, adaptive control and commercialization capabilities.