A DSTG engineer attaches a radio frequency cable to the engineering model of the Buccaneer Main Mission nanosatellite. (Commonwealth of Australia)
The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has launched a domestically developed and built nanosatellite into low Earth orbit (LEO) to support the operations of the Australian Defence Force (ADF).
This CubeSat, known as the Buccaneer Main Mission, will collect “high-frequency (HF) measurements in LEO to better understand radio frequency propagation through the ionosphere”, the DoD announced on 18 March. The CubeSat was launched from the US.
Buccaneer Main Mission's payloads were designed by the Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG). DSTG also collaborated with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and Defence Space Command to integrate the complete satellite and qualify it for spaceworthiness, the DoD said.
The satellite bus was developed by South Australia-based Inovor Technologies Pty Ltd, the DoD added.
Australia's Chief Defence Scientist Tanya Monro said, “The in-orbit outcomes from Buccaneer Main Mission will inform future space-based capability for defence, and the technology and knowledge gained will be available for Australian industry for use in developing future capabilities.”
Buccaneer Main Mission is the second of two CubeSats launched under the Buccaneer project. The first CubeSat, known as Buccaneer Risk Mitigation Mission, was developed by DSTG in collaboration with the University of New South Wales, Canberra (UNSW Canberra), and launched in 2017. The CubeSat deorbited in October 2024.
According to DSTG, Buccaneer Risk Mitigation Mission had an advanced HF receiver to provide far-field calibration measurements for the ADF's Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN). These measurements helped to enhance the capability of JORN to more accurately locate targets such as aircraft.
According to Janes C4ISR & Mission Systems: Land
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