On September 24, 2018, a team from King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok
(KMUTNB) successfully integrated the first completely Thai-built satellite, dubbed KNACKSAT, into a
CubeSat dispenser at Spaceflight’s Integration Facility in Auburn, Washington. KNACKSAT is an
acronym for KMUTNB Academic Challenge of Knowledge SATellite.
KMUTNB has a contract to launch its KNACKSAT satellite with Spaceflight on its SSO-A: SmallSat
Express dedicated rideshare mission. Spaceflight has a contract with SpaceX to launch a collection of
small satellites, including KNACKSAT, on a Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The
launch is currently scheduled for later this year. KNACKSAT will be deployed from one of the SSO-A
mission’s free flyersto a polar, sun-synchronous orbit around 575 kilometers above Earth.
A team of TGGS lecturer, researchers and students from the Communications Engineering program also took part in the development of KNACKSAT. Once in orbit, KNACKSAT will make contact to the ground station which is located at TGGS building, KMUTNB.
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