If so, come join the SF Bay area Student Team!  

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The SF Bay Area High School SlimSat Space Initiative (HSSSI-26) Team is one of several teams across the US that are participating in the CAPE-Twiggs CubeSat Project, which is a collaboration with the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering and supported by NASA.

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The mission of the SF Bay Area HSSSI-26 Team is to build, test, and fly mini-satellites, called SlimSats, which will be deployed into low earth orbit from the International Space Station in 2026. Students will learn first-hand what it takes to design, build, and operate a system that will orbit the earth. ​

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Program Prerequisites:

Students interested in participating must be:

    1) enrolled in a high school in the San Francisco Bay Area

    2) a US citizen or a US Protected Individual (Definition of a US Protected Individual)

        This prerequisite is for compliance with US government ITAR regulations, which are applicable to US

        teams working with satellites, even very small ones, like SlimSats

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Program Cost:

There is no cost to participate in the program. Nevertheless, student participants will likely need to purchase personal small equipment necessary for system development, such as an Arduino board, a digital multimeter, small hand tools, etc.  A personal laptop will also be needed. 

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What students will learn during the program:
​No prior technical experience is required, although, it is helpful.  Hands-on training, such as how to build electronics, how to program an Arduino or Raspberry Pi (using C++ and/or Python), and how to 3D print will be provided. Developing leadership skills is one of the major objectives of the program.  After initial team training, student teams are expected to be student organized and student run.

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What to expect:

This program will require both online and in-person participation throughout the year starting from January 2025 through December 2025.  Online meetings will generally be held once a week on weekday evenings. In-person meetings and afternoon hackathon style meetings will be held once a month on a Saturday or Sunday.  Training, videos, and resources will be available to participating students though this website. 

The San Francisco Bay Area is large! Ideally, a few teams throughout the Bay Area will be established, and in-person meetings will be held at a location relatively near to you.  Once teams are established, a more detailed scheduled and plan will be released. 

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Who - Student Qualities that We're Looking For:

It takes a great team with a broad range of diverse skills to make any space mission come together.  We're looking for students with all kinds of backgrounds and interests, both technical and creative.  Dedication and determination are two strengths that are vital to have as a team member.

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About the program Mission Mentor:

Hi, I'm Eric. I am the SF Bay Area HSSSI-26 Mission Mentor, and an Astro-nut at heart.  I've led the development of multiple satellites and payloads that have been launched into space while at NASA.  Additionally, I have an MS degree in Aer/Astro from Stanford University.  While at Stanford, I was a part of Prof. Bob Twiggs' team that designed, built, and launched the first US CubeSat, called QuakeSat.  Prof. Bob Twiggs is also one of the collaborators for this project, the CAPE-Twiggs CubeSat Project.  You can find out more about me on my LinkedIn page.

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Have Questions?

If you have any questions that are not answered here, feel free to send an email.  I will be happy to respond and also post the answer in a FAQ.

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Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you.  If you are interested in participating in this exciting program opportunity, please fill out the Google Form. ​