Science
AEROCUBE 6A
CubeSat Technology Demonstrator (Differential Drag) · The Aerospace Corporation
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The first of Aerospace Corporation's 0.5U AeroCube-6 pair, launched 2014 to demonstrate orbit control using variable atmospheric drag — deliberately changing the satellite's cross-sectional profile to speed up or slow down orbital decay without any propellant at all. This 'differential drag' technique later became foundational to how small satellite operators manage constellation spacing and end-of-life deorbiting, using nothing but clever geometry and Earth's thin upper atmosphere.
Its orbit
- Orbit
- Low Earth Orbitcan appear as a fast-moving star at dawn or dusk
- Altitude
- 340–373 mi (548–601 km)
- Inclination
- 97.7°
- One orbit
- 96.0 minutes15.0 orbits a day
- NORAD ID
- 40045
- Int’l designator
- 2014-033AM
- Launched
- 2014
Orbital elements from CelesTrak, as of 22 Sep 2026.
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