I've been working with a company called Planetary Resources lately. Some of you may have heard of it. They plan to mine asteroids. They are hosting a large community launch event today in Seattle to announce one of their projects, a community-use telescope, sourced and used by and for the public via Kickstarter:
Kickstarter has allowed many people to bring their dreams to life. From bluetooth watches, virtual reality headsets, and 3D printers, to old school video game reboots and innovative cooking tools, Kickstarter lets the community decide what gets made.
Now Planetary Resources (the asteroid mining company) is ready to kickstart an ambitious new project:
To build a space telescope and launch it into orbit for the public to use for whatever they want.
From taking picture of yourself in space, to looking for new planets around distant stars, to joining the team at the launch party, there are rewards at all levels.
The telescope will help scientists do critical research, and give students access to an innovative way to learn. Plus, it will allow space enthusiasts around the world to get involved.
Here’s what you’re helping to build:
The Arkyd-100 is a 15 kilogram spacecraft with a 20cm aperture, f/4 primary optic which is able resolve features down to ~1 arc second. It has a 5 MP+ image sensor with a detection capability down to visual magnitude 19, and a wavelength range from 200 nm to 1100 nm, and filters for multi-spectral imaging.
The goal is to have this project ready for launch and public access by 2015.
To do all that by the deadline, we’re going to need the help of the community.
Whether you want a picture of yourself taken from orbit, to direct where the satellite looks, or want to attend the launch party with the engineering team, you’ll find it on the kickstarter page
Pledge your support here http://lky.me/1GQB
Every little bit helps us make this mission a success, and even if you can’t help financially, you can support getting this mission off the ground by Liking the project page on Facebook, tweeting it to your followers, or sharing it with your favorite online communities.
Kickstarter has allowed many people to bring their dreams to life. From bluetooth watches, virtual reality headsets, and 3D printers, to old school video game reboots and innovative cooking tools, Kickstarter lets the community decide what gets made.
Now Planetary Resources (the asteroid mining company) is ready to kickstart an ambitious new project:
To build a space telescope and launch it into orbit for the public to use for whatever they want.
From taking picture of yourself in space, to looking for new planets around distant stars, to joining the team at the launch party, there are rewards at all levels.
The telescope will help scientists do critical research, and give students access to an innovative way to learn. Plus, it will allow space enthusiasts around the world to get involved.
Here’s what you’re helping to build:
The Arkyd-100 is a 15 kilogram spacecraft with a 20cm aperture, f/4 primary optic which is able resolve features down to ~1 arc second. It has a 5 MP+ image sensor with a detection capability down to visual magnitude 19, and a wavelength range from 200 nm to 1100 nm, and filters for multi-spectral imaging.
The goal is to have this project ready for launch and public access by 2015.
To do all that by the deadline, we’re going to need the help of the community.
Whether you want a picture of yourself taken from orbit, to direct where the satellite looks, or want to attend the launch party with the engineering team, you’ll find it on the kickstarter page
Pledge your support here http://lky.me/1GQB
Every little bit helps us make this mission a success, and even if you can’t help financially, you can support getting this mission off the ground by Liking the project page on Facebook, tweeting it to your followers, or sharing it with your favorite online communities.
