Nanosatellite Tracking Ships: From Concept To Launch In 7 Months

The Space Flight Laboratory (SFL) at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies and COM DEV Ltd have developed a low Earth orbit nanosatellite in less than seven months to perform rapid turnaround experiments in space to detect and study Automatic Indentification System (AIS) signals transmitted by maritime vessels. The satellite, known as Nanosatellite Tracking Ships (NTS) leverages both SFL\u27s CanX-2 nanosatellite technology and Generic Nanosatellite Bus (GNB) mechanical design to house a custom AIS receiver payload developed by COM DEV Ltd. NTS was developed under an extremely tight schedule, with on-orbit results required within a year from contract start. NTS have successfully met all of its mission objectives and continues to operate in orbit. This paper outlines how SFL and COM DEV were able to rapidly design, construct and deploy a custom satellite to respond to the opportunity to bring on-orbit AIS detection services to the international community. This paper also provides an overview of the on-orbit data collected thus far outlining the capability of the spacecraft