Second satellite built by Romanian high schoolers to be launched by Space X

A second satellite built by five students from the International Computer Science High School in Bucharest has passed its tests and will be launched by SpaceX in November aboard a Falcon 9 rocket.

ROM-3, the second satellite built by the RomSpace team, is in its final stages. Mechanical and electrical tests have been successfully completed in the laboratories of Alba Orbital in Glasgow, United Kingdom. The picosatellite, named Space Starling, is ready for flight and is scheduled to be installed on the rocket in October, Digi24 reported.

ROM-3 is a rectangular parallelepiped with dimensions of 5 x 5 x 10 centimeters, a larger version of its predecessor, ROM-2. It is equipped with more advanced, complex technology, including a 5-megapixel camera. Its mission is to collect data from space about the Earth's crust, and the reception of this data will be done through the international network of radio amateurs.

The satellite is scheduled to be launched in November from Vandenberg, California, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. It will orbit the Earth at an altitude of 550 km, at a speed of 28,000 km/h, orbiting the planet 15 times every 24 hours, passing over Romania twice a day and transmitting on the frequency of 436.235 MHz, with the call sign YP3R.

The team of students is composed of Filip Buşcu, Alexandru Luchianov, Alexandru Unteşu, David Ghiberdic, and Alexandru Peticaru.

ROM-3 was made with the financial support of the Terapia group from Cluj, the agency The Group, and with the support of the International Computer Science High School by District 3 City Hall.

(Photo source: Rom-space.ro)