Enabling Science With CubeSats—Trends and Prospects

The emergence of CubeSats/SmallSats began a miniaturization revolution in the satellite domain nearly 20 years ago. Only a few people could have predicted their capabilities at the time and, today, these small satellites are changing the world in a completely different way. They have established themselves as a viable science platform. These small satellites are the best candidates for high-risk science missions. CubeSat constellations or swarm missions will usher in a new era of space exploration by providing multipoint measurements. This article provides a brief overview of CubeSat as a science platform, as well as their potential and challenges for future scientific missions. It also provides an overview of the existing CubeSat systems, with a focus on communication subsystems, particularly antennas and RF front ends. The proper utilization of CubeSat space with highly efficient integrated or shared components is a trending research area these days, and this article will provide a glimpse of that. The system requirements for future missions are also discussed, which will serve as a guide for CubeSat system developers.