Aist-ST

Aist-ST [Samara National Research University]

The Aist-ST small satellite is a Russian 16U CubeSat developed by the Samara National Research University named after Academician S. P. Korolev. It carries experimental radar imaging equipment.

The mission is intended to demonstrate synthetic aperture radar technology in orbit. It supports research and educational activities related to Earth and near-Earth space monitoring. Its objectives include evaluating the performance of X-band SAR instruments under space conditions.

The SAR payload operates in the 8–12 GHz range and generates radar imagery for ice-cover monitoring in Arctic regions and for broader Earth observation tasks. The satellite also carries a contamination measurement module based on quartz microbalances. This unit measures the rate at which spacecraft surfaces accumulate deposits originating from the satellite’s own external environment.

Aist-ST was developed using a 16U CubeSat-class platform. The design reflects the university’s line of small experimental spacecraft and incorporates modular subsystems optimised for radar operations and in-orbit technology testing.

The satellite operates in a low Earth orbit at 400–600 km altitude. Its radar resolution on the ground is not worse than 2 km. The instrument offers a maximum operating bandwidth of 200 MHz and a radiometric sensitivity from –12 to –8 dB. The phased-array antenna has an area of 0.32 m² and uses vertical polarization. The maximum slant-range observation distance is 500 km, and the swath width is at least 30 km. The onboard power system provides up to 150 W.