Kanyini satellite breezes through key stress test ahead of 2024 launch

Kanyini, the South Australian satellite, has successfully passed a crucial milestone ahead its mid-2024 launch by fully accomplishing its Environmental Stress Screening (ESS). The satellite, fully produced at Adelaide's Lot Fourteen, underwent two weeks of rigorous trials under extreme conditions, such as temperature extremes, heavy vibrations, and crushing vacuum atmospheres. The satellite remained fully functional throughout the rigorous testing.

The demanding ESS testing, undertaken at the National Space Test Facility at the Australian National University in Canberra, verifies the satellite's capacity to endure the harsh physical and environmental conditions expected during its operational lifetime. The completion of the ESS and Full System Integration Review propels the South Australian-based mission team into the final manufacturing stage, in preparation for the launch.

Speaking about the progress, Susan Close, Deputy Premier and Minister for Defence and Space Industries commented, "The Kanyini build is a remarkable example of South Australian space industry collaboration and expertise driving major advances in local capability. The successful completion of this critical milestone brings us one step closer to realising our mission of seeing homegrown South Australian space technologies launched into low Earth orbit."

The Kanyini mission is seen as a vital step for the South Australian space sector, intended to build space heritage for local satellite manufacturing, Internet of Things (IoT) and mission lead role— all of which are essential necessities for global space sector success. Kanyini will be launched onboard SpaceX's Transporter-11 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, USA. The mission is a joint effort between the South Australian Government, Adelaide-based commercial satellite manufacturer Inovor Technologies, and global IoT provider Myriota, with the SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre as the mission lead.

Once in orbit, Kanyini's dual IoT and imager payloads will supply crucial space data to government and research institutions, particularly pertaining to sustainability and climate impacts. Kanyini's enhanced onboard processing capability, coupled with advanced Artificial Intelligence algorithms, will facilitate smart processing of data directly in orbit, supporting time-critical decision applications, such as bushfire smoke detection and various other services.

Commenting on the achievement, Kanyini Mission Director Peter Nikoloff stated, "In reaching this milestone, Kanyini has already achieved one of our key goals for the mission - building the capacity of the Australian space industry and advancing the local expertise within the sector. The collaborative effort from the whole mission team has been outstanding up until now."

Inovor founder and CEO Dr Matt Tetlow spoke highly of the testing results saying, "The stellar results from the ESS not only validate the meticulous testing processes we've implemented but also exemplify the steady commitment of our team in producing world-class technology."

Dr David Haley, CTO and co-founder of Myriota, also had positive remarks on this milestone, viewing it as a step towards positioning South Australia at the forefront of the national space industry while enhancing global IoT sensing, especially in areas such as water quality, crop health, and bushfire resilience.