Emerging of nanosatellites

It has been more than 60 years since human sends the first artificial satellite into space. The space-related technologies have developed and evolved rapidly into a highly sophisticated and technically demanding regime. This chapter outlines the philosophy of small and microsatellites as a “smaller, faster, cheaper” and probably “better” alternative way for many developing countries to initiate their space program. In particular, the different aspects of CubeSat were examined and elaborated, from its conceptual inception in 1999, the first CubeSat launched in 2003, the way to put CubeSats into space, its development into capable means to carry out scientific and commercial missions, and even go beyond the Earth into Mars and Moon. The chapter ends with a highlight on the need for a micropropulsion system for CubeSat to fulfill its tremendous potential in the dawn of this “new space.”