An Indian teenager has built what is
thought could be the world's lightest satellite, which will be launched
at a Nasa facility in the US in June.
Rifath Shaarook's 64-gram (0.14 lb) device was selected as the winner in a youth design competition.
The 18-year-old says its main purpose was to demonstrate the performance of 3-D printed carbon fibre.
Rifath told local media his invention will go on a four-hour mission for a sub-orbital flight.
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During that time, the lightweight satellite will operate for around 12 minutes in a micro-gravity environment of space.
"We designed it completely from scratch," he said.
"It will have a new kind of on-board computer and eight indigenous
built-in sensors to measure acceleration, rotation and the magnetosphere
of the earth."
The satellite has been named KalamSat after former
Indian president Abdul Kalam, a pioneer for the country's aeronautical
science ambitions.
His project was selected in a challenge called Cubes in Space, organised by education company idoodle with support from Nasa and the Colorado Space Grant Consortium.
Newcomer
scientist Rifath comes from a small town in Tamil Nadu and now works as
lead scientist at Chennai-based Space Kidz India, an organisation
promoting science and education for Indian children and teenagers.
The
KalamSat is not his first invention: at the age of 15, he built a
helium weather balloon as a part of nationwide competition for young
scientists
BBC NEWS
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