A pair of satellites, both based on cheap, consumer electronics components, will be launched in the coming year, part of a project run by a British university and tech firm.
One has parts from a Google Nexus phone, and will be launched later this year, but the second satellite is more up our alley. It’s full of Kinect guts, which will be used in orbit to “provide the satellites with 3D spatial awareness to align themselves and dock together.”
“It may seem far-fetched, but our low cost nanosatellites could dock to build large and sophisticated modular structures such as space telescopes,” project lead Dr Chris Bridges told Eurogamer. “Unlike today’s big space missions, these could be reconfigured as mission objectives change, and upgraded in-orbit with the latest available technologies.”
Satellites to use Kinect in orbital docking system [Eurogamer]
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