Experience and methodology gained from 4 years of student satellite projects

The AAU Cubesat student satellite project at Aalborg University was initiated in September 2001 and led to the launch of the satellite on the 30th of June 2003 with a "Rockot" rocket from Plesetsk in Russia. The satellite survived three months in orbit and based on the experiences gained the next student satellite project was commenced called AAUSAT II which is due for launch early 2006. This paper presents the experiences gained and lessons learned from the work with student satellite projects at Aalborg University as well as the methodology used to manage these projects. First an introduction to the concept of student satellite project,, is given and the two student satellite projects are introduced. Then an introduction and description of the problem based learning concept used at Aalborg University is given and advantages of applying it to these projects are discussed. The benefits of student satellite projects are also discussed. Finally the specific management methods for the two projects are described and lessons learned from each project as well as a set of recommendations for future projects are given.