What is a CubeSat Mission?
ImplementedOrientation · All Levels · 15–20 min
Learn what a CubeSat is, typical sizes (1U/3U), and why every mission starts with a clear objective before hardware.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as CubeSat Mission System Builder — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orientation_what_is_cubesat`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected mission objective recorded in the activity
- Top three subsystems identified for that objective
- One-sentence mission objective stated in the mission brief panel
- +1 more
Subsystem Detective
ImplementedOrientation · All Levels · 35–45 min
Subsystem Detective: Find the CubeSat Part Behind the Clue — identify CubeSat subsystems by matching clues, symptoms, components, and mission responsibilities.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Clue matching, symptom diagnosis, local self-check, and evidence artifact at `/twin/learn/activities/orientation_subsystem_detective`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Clue match summary (which clues mapped to which subsystem)
- Selected mission symptom and subsystem diagnosis with reasoning
- Reflection on subsystem vocabulary
- +1 more
Mission / Subsystem Trade-off
ImplementedOrientation · All Levels · 40–50 min
Mission / Subsystem Trade-off: Choose What Matters Most — explore how a CubeSat mission objective changes subsystem priorities, resources, and engineering trade-offs.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Mission selector, subsystem priority allocation with priority budget feedback, deterministic trade-off warnings, final design strategy, local self-check, and evidence artifact at `/twin/learn/activities/orientation_mission_subsystem_tradeoff`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Mission type and example objective recorded
- Subsystem priorities and budget used / remaining
- Trade-off warning explanation and selected design strategy
- +2 more
Digital Twin Before Hardware
ImplementedOrientation · All Levels · 15–20 min
See why teams practice on software twins before soldering, integrating, or launching hardware.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Digital Twin vs Hardware Test Planner — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orientation_digital_twin_before_hardware` (software planning only; bench work remains optional and supervised).
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected test area recorded in the planner
- Comparison notes: software digital twin vs physical hardware / classroom validation path
- Evidence checklist selections captured in the exported or copied test plan summary
- +1 more
From Launch to Orbit
ImplementedLaunch, Gravity & Orbit Basics · Middle School · 20–25 min
Follow launch to orbit: gravity pulls inward while high sideways speed makes the spacecraft keep “missing” Earth — that is orbit.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Launch-to-Orbit Free-Fall Visualizer — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orbit_from_launch_to_orbit`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Speed factor selected in the visualizer
- Observed path class (falls back / near orbit / escape-like)
- Evidence summary copied with gravity-inward, velocity-sideways, free-fall checklist
Orbit Speed and Altitude
ImplementedLaunch, Gravity & Orbit Basics · High School · 25–30 min
Connect altitude, orbital speed, and period with grade-appropriate math — estimates, not STK-grade precision.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Altitude–Speed–Period Calculator — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orbit_speed_and_altitude`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Altitude selected and recorded
- Speed (km/s) and period (min) from the calculator
- One-sentence explanation of altitude vs period trend
Low Earth Orbit vs Higher Orbit
ImplementedLaunch, Gravity & Orbit Basics · High School · 20–25 min
Compare LEO with higher orbits for power, latency, coverage, and what is realistic for a small satellite.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Orbit Class Trade-Off Explorer — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orbit_leo_vs_higher`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Orbit class selected
- Two advantages and two disadvantages stated
- Short mission justification for a stated goal
Ground Track and Coverage
ImplementedLaunch, Gravity & Orbit Basics · High School · 20–25 min
Ground track is the path on Earth under the satellite; inclination sets the latitude “ceiling” of coverage.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Ground Track and Coverage Explorer — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orbit_ground_track_coverage`.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Inclination and max latitude coverage recorded
- Observation of ground track on the map (screenshot or description)
- Short explanation of why inclination matters for coverage
Contact Window Basics
ImplementedLaunch, Gravity & Orbit Basics · Middle School · 20 min
Ground stations only hear the spacecraft when it rises above the horizon — short passes, a few times per day in LEO.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as Ground Station Contact Window Simulator — interactive activity on `/twin/learn/activities/orbit_contact_window_basics`; related `contact_window_pointing` experiment for attitude during pass.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Ground station selected
- Passes and total contact time recorded
- Whether data backlog occurs in the toy model
- +1 more
Choose a Mission Objective
Partial / teachingMission Design & Payload Thinking · Middle School · 20–25 min
Select a mission objective and understand how it shapes all other decisions.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now as teaching model — Mission Design Lab templates with objectives and constraint cards; not a requirements database or CAD.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Written objective + three derived needs
- Student explains why vague objectives fail in design reviews
Payload Drives the Mission
Partial / teachingMission Design & Payload Thinking · High School · 25–30 min
Understand how payload type and power/data needs shape every other subsystem decision.
Status: concept_ready
Software: Available now as teaching model — compare Mission Design templates; payload drives budget cards, not a payload hardware simulator.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Dependency diagram: payload → ADCS/power/comms/thermal
- Student names one new requirement when swapping payload types
Payload Data Generation
Partial / teachingMission Design & Payload Thinking · High School · 25–30 min
Estimate how much data a payload generates and what that means for onboard storage and downlink.
Status: concept_ready
Software: Available now as teaching calculation — Mission Design data budget cards; not a camera sensor or onboard storage simulator.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Rate × time calculation checked against template utilization
- Student explains backlog if generation > downlink
Mission Success Criteria
Partial / teachingMission Design & Payload Thinking · University · 30–40 min
Define measurable mission success criteria and understand how they drive test and verification.
Status: concept_ready
Software: Available now as replay/evidence workflow — link criteria to catalog experiments and run summaries; not automated requirement verification.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Success criteria table with measurable thresholds
- Replay quote: chart snippet or metric tied to pass/fail
Power Budget Basics
ImplementedPower / Thermal / Budgets · High School · 25–35 min
Estimate average and peak power from subsystem loads and duty cycles; compare generation vs consumption with engineering margin.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — interactive average/peak power teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_power_stress_test`. Not a certified power analysis or full EPS transient simulator.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected mission preset and load / duty settings
- Average power, peak power, and generation vs consumption summary
- Margin status and one-sentence largest consumer or driver
- +1 more
Day / Night Energy Balance
ImplementedPower / Thermal / Budgets · High School · 25–35 min
Compare sunlight charging, eclipse energy draw, and battery reserve using a simple energy-balance teaching model.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — sun/eclipse energy-balance teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_battery_eclipse`. Not a battery safety certification or detailed chemistry model.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Sun / eclipse / orbit settings and average load
- Energy generated in sun and energy drawn in eclipse (teaching Wh estimate)
- Battery remaining or reserve status and one mitigation if low
- +1 more
Thermal Hot / Cold Case
ImplementedPower / Thermal / Budgets · High School · 20–30 min
Use a simplified hot/cold case model: environment, internal heat, and limits — without claiming flight thermal analysis.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — simplified thermal risk / margin statement at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_thermal_balance`. Not a multi-node thermal solver.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected environment and duty/heater settings
- Hot/cold/marginal risk flag and component limit focus
- First engineering check statement
- +1 more
Mass / Volume / Resource Trade-off
ImplementedPower / Thermal / Budgets · High School · 25–35 min
Allocate finite mass/volume/power budget points across subsystems; pick a strategy and accept an explicit trade-off.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — resource allocation + strategy summary at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_mass_builder`. Not CAD or certified mass accounting.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Allocation table and remaining budget
- Warnings triggered and accepted trade-off
- Selected strategy and one-sentence justification
- +1 more
Line-of-Sight Communication
ImplementedCommunication / Ground Link · High School · 20–25 min
Decide whether a satellite is visible from a chosen ground station above a minimum elevation, and read a teaching-grade contact-duration label.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — interactive line-of-sight + minimum-elevation teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/comm_line_of_sight_basics`. Not orbit propagation, not licensed link planning.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Ground station + pass scenario + minimum elevation chosen
- Visible / not visible result with reason (below horizon / low elevation / good pass)
- Approximate contact-duration label
- +1 more
Data Rate × Contact Time
ImplementedCommunication / Ground Link · High School · 20–25 min
Estimate how much data can be downlinked in one or more passes by combining data rate, contact duration, and number of passes against a payload data volume.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — interactive data-rate × contact-time teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/comm_data_rate_contact_budget`. Not a protocol-accurate throughput simulator, no real licensed link planning.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Data rate, contact duration, passes, and payload volume chosen
- Total downlinkable data and backlog status (within capacity / over capacity)
- One mitigation if backlog exists (lower rate of capture, schedule more passes, prioritise data, etc.)
- +1 more
Link Margin Trade-off
ImplementedCommunication / Ground Link · High School · 25–30 min
Use a simplified link-margin model to see how distance, transmit power, antenna gain, data rate, and noise/interference shift a teaching margin score.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — qualitative link-margin teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/comm_link_margin_tradeoff`. Not a flight-grade or ITU-compliant link budget; not real RF certification.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected distance, transmit power, antenna gain, data rate, and noise preset
- Teaching margin score with safe / weak / failed badge
- One trade-off explanation in plain language
- +1 more
Command / Telemetry Flow
ImplementedCommunication / Ground Link · High School · 20–30 min
Distinguish uplink commands, downlink telemetry, payload data, packet loss / retry, and prioritization with a teaching-grade flow model.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented — interactive command/telemetry priority and retry teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/comm_command_telemetry_flow`. Not a real radio, not a real satellite command interface, not licensed operations.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected command type, telemetry priority, packet loss / retry, and payload queue
- Command-response timeline and ordered priority queue result
- What gets sent first and what is dropped or deferred
- +1 more
Why Pointing Matters
Partial / teachingAttitude Control & Pointing · Middle School · 15–20 min
Understand why a satellite must point in the right direction and what happens if pointing fails.
Status: concept_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator + 3D/2D attitude views — single-axis rotation teaching lab, not full three-axis spacecraft ADCS.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Live chart: target vs actual angle
- Student names mission harm from large pointing error (comms, power, science)
Attitude Hold Basics
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · High School · 25–30 min
Run a basic attitude hold experiment and observe how the controller converges to the target angle.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — run `attitude_hold_basics`; telemetry charts and replay supported.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Telemetry chart showing error → small
- Replay artifact with timestamped settle
- Optional 3D scene showing body vs target ghost
Step Response to +10 Degrees
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · High School · 25–30 min
Apply a 10-degree step command and characterize the response: overshoot, settling time, steady-state error.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — `ten_degree_step_response` with chart + replay evidence.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Chart with overshoot peak marked
- Numeric or estimated settling time
- Wheel effort trace if shown
Contact Window Pointing
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · High School · 25–30 min
Understand how the satellite must point toward the ground station during a contact window.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — `contact_window_pointing` models schedule-driven target changes; RF link is not simulated.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Telemetry during window showing tracking error
- Replay compare of good vs poor pointing during pass segment
Gentle vs Aggressive Control
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · University · 30–35 min
Compare two controller tunings: a gentle low-gain response vs an aggressive high-gain response.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — `gentle_vs_aggressive_control` with replay/compare.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Two replays with overshoot and wheel effort contrasted
- Student-written ops recommendation for contact prep
Power-Aware Attitude Control
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · University · 30–35 min
Understand how power constraints affect attitude control decisions and how to balance them.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — `power_aware_attitude_control`; power/eclipse context is teaching overlay, not full EPS simulation.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Chart showing reduced wheel effort or longer settle under power-aware rules
- Mission narrative line in replay if present
Daylight vs Eclipse Response
ImplementedAttitude Control & Pointing · University · 30–35 min
Observe how attitude control behaviour changes between sunlit and eclipse phases of an orbit.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — `daylight_vs_eclipse_response`; eclipse is a modeled mission context for teaching, not orbital illumination physics.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Phase markers or battery trend differences daylight vs eclipse
- Control effort comparison across phases in replay
Telemetry Dashboard Basics
ImplementedTelemetry, Evidence & Operations · Middle School · 20–25 min
Learn to read a live telemetry dashboard and identify what each channel tells you about the satellite.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now in one-axis simulator — live charts + mission-context fields during runs; export/replay surfaces for evidence.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Screenshot or description of five channels with correct meaning
- Student identifies converging error visually
Subsystem Interpretation Walkthrough
ImplementedTelemetry, Evidence & Operations · University · 35–40 min
Walk through all subsystem telemetry channels and learn to interpret them as a mission operator.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now — `subsystem_interpretation_walkthrough` experiment guides multi-panel interpretation in the console.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Subsystem health table with yellow/red examples
- Risk observation per subsystem backed by a channel
Replay and Mission Debrief
ImplementedTelemetry, Evidence & Operations · High School · 25–30 min
Use the replay tool to re-examine a completed run and build an evidence-based mission debrief.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now as replay/evidence workflow — `replay_and_mission_debrief`; compare runs and capture chart evidence.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Replay artifact reference (run id or screenshot)
- Three-sentence debrief citing at least two chart moments
Telemetry Trust and Stale Data
ImplementedTelemetry, Evidence & Operations · University · 25–30 min
Understand why stale or missing telemetry is a mission risk and how to identify it.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now — `telemetry_trust_and_stale_data` surfaces trust/stale teaching behavior in simulator/replay paths.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Stale or flat-line segment identified on chart
- Student proposes mitigation (watchdog, redundancy, operator procedure)
Mission-Based STEM Capstone
Partial / teachingTelemetry, Evidence & Operations · University · 50–60 min
Complete a full mission journey from design to telemetry debrief and produce a mission evidence report.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Available now — guided capstone ties Mission Design + simulator + replay; student integrates evidence manually (no auto grader).
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Mission report with budget summary + control chart + debrief
- Explicit pass/partial/fail on student-stated criteria
What Does Autonomy Mean?
ImplementedAI / ML & Autonomy · High School · 20–25 min
Explore what autonomy means for a CubeSat — from alert-only to recommended actions to simulated execution — and why human oversight remains essential at every level.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as interactive autonomy level and scenario explorer at `/twin/learn/activities/ai_autonomy_basics` — teaching-grade; no real satellite commands, no certified onboard AI.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Chosen autonomy level and scenario recorded
- List of allowed vs disallowed actions at the selected level
- One-sentence reflection on why human oversight matters
- +1 more
Features, Labels and Training Data
ImplementedAI / ML & Autonomy · High School · 30–35 min
Discover what features and labels are, how training examples teach a model, and why data quality — not just algorithm choice — determines whether a classifier is trustworthy.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as interactive feature/label explorer at `/twin/learn/activities/aiml_assisted_classification` — teaching-grade; no real ML training pipeline, no external AI API.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Selected features and justification for each choice
- Assigned label and explanation for a given telemetry example
- Note on one way a missing or biased feature would harm the model
- +1 more
Anomaly Classifier
ImplementedAI / ML & Autonomy · High School · 25–30 min
Run a deterministic teaching classifier — rule-based or preset ML — on a telemetry vector; inspect the predicted class, confidence score, and contributing features.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as dual-classifier teaching lab at `/twin/learn/activities/aiml_normal_vs_abnormal` — deterministic lookup tables, no external ML library, browser-local only.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Chosen scenario and classifier type recorded
- Predicted class and confidence score
- Top contributing features with brief explanation
- +2 more
Confidence and False Alarms
ImplementedAI / ML & Autonomy · High School · 30–35 min
Adjust detector sensitivity and observe how true positives, false positives, true negatives, and false negatives change — and choose a threshold that fits the mission risk profile.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as interactive sensitivity trade-off explorer at `/twin/learn/activities/aiml_simple_fault_rules` — deterministic preset confusion-matrix data, browser-local only.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- TP/FP/TN/FN counts at chosen sensitivity level
- Chosen sensitivity setting with operational justification
- One-sentence explanation of alarm fatigue risk
- +1 more
Human-in-the-Loop Decision
ImplementedAI / ML & Autonomy · High School · 35–40 min
Review evidence cards for a predicted anomaly, check safety rules, and choose a response — from ignoring the alert to entering a simulated safe mode — then debrief your decision.
Status: pilot_ready
Software: Implemented as interactive human-in-the-loop decision lab at `/twin/learn/activities/aiml_autonomous_safe_mode` — teaching simulation only; no real satellite commands, not certified onboard AI, not flight software.
Expected evidence (student-led today)
- Chosen predicted anomaly and confidence level
- Evidence card review — supporting / neutral / contradicting classification
- Chosen action and safety rule check result
- +2 more
Track 1 overview — Launch, gravity, orbit
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
A coherent five-activity mini-course with local self-check and evidence copy/export (text+JSON).
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 2 overview — Mission Design / Payload
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
A coherent four-activity mini-course on mission objectives, payload thinking, data vs downlink, and measurable success criteria — local self-check and evidence copy/export.
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 3 overview — Power / Thermal / Budgets
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
A coherent four-session mini-course on power budgets, day/night energy balance, thermal hot/cold reasoning, and mass/volume/resource trade-offs — local evidence and self-check only. Three Track 3 extension items remain honest path-only entries (no dedicated route).
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 4 overview — Communication / Ground Link
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Complete four-session mini-course: line-of-sight contact basics → data rate × contact time budget → simplified link-margin trade-offs → command/telemetry flow with priorities and retries. Local evidence and self-check only — not a certified RF link budget, not real satellite command, no SDR.
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 5 overview — ADCS / Attitude Control
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Complete seven-session mini-course: why pointing matters → sensor noise + drift → reaction-wheel step response → contact-window pointing → PID tuning trade-offs → power-aware control → daylight vs eclipse evidence review. Local evidence and self-check only — not full 3-axis flight ADCS, not remote hardware, not a certified ADCS simulator.
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 6 overview — Telemetry / Evidence
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Complete five-session mini-course: telemetry stream basics (fields, units, timestamps) → subsystem health thresholds (nominal/warning/critical) → replay timeline evidence → anomaly detective (multi-clue diagnosis) → mission evidence debrief (link evidence to success criteria). Local evidence and self-check only — not real satellite telemetry, not a ground-station command interface, not certified anomaly diagnosis.
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Track 7 overview — AI / ML Autonomy
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Complete five-session mini-course: autonomy boundaries → features/labels and data quality → anomaly classifier comparison → confidence and false-alarm threshold trade-offs → human-in-the-loop decision review. Local evidence and self-check only — deterministic teaching models, not certified AI, not flight software, not real onboard autonomy.
Status: implemented
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Curriculum map
AvailableProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Grade-aware pathways, outcomes, and honest readiness labels.
Status: hub
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.
Standard activity shell preview
PreviewProduct foundation · All Levels · —
Product-engine preview of the reusable activity layout used on yardstick routes—useful for coaches comparing structure across tracks.
Status: preview
Software: Available as a hub or planning surface.