Raspberries in the stratosphere - complete CubeSat model demo

While preparing for my engineering thesis, I reviewed the available topics. Most were – to put it simply – not very ambitious: typical CRUD-based web solutions and standard mobile apps. I wanted more. I proposed my own idea: a CubeSat-format satellite model, built from a raw concept into a physical device. The challenge of building something from scratch while exploring my three greatest interests was incredibly exciting.

Once my proposal was approved, I hit the ground running. The journey wasn't a straight line; there were many pivots from the initial design, numerous hardware iterations, and creative problem-solving at every turn. Despite the hurdles, I am proud of the final outcome and the work that went into it.

Let's dive in!

First thing to do was to determine how power distribution system should work - requirements I created were that it should have power long enough to survive flight attached to High Altitude Balloon with all sensors, GPS and LoRa module on, and have some power left in order to find it in case it wanders of further away.

All PCBs in this project were created in KiCad, and manufactured by JLCPCB. Below are some photos from process of designing to final board.