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Funded! This project successfully raised its funding goal on September 12, 2012.

Communication: Part One

Update #3 · Aug 6, 2012 · comment

Hello Team SkyCube!

A week ago there were 500 of us, and we made it a goal to double ourselves this week.
Right now team SkyCube is 1028 in number.  And it's only Monday.  Wow!  If you're one of our new sponsors this week, welcome to Team SkyCube!
Let's see if we can do it again next week!

Here's a 10-minute video that shows what a great team can accomplish working together:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E88d4e1gYh0&feature=player_embedded

These are ten of humanity's finest minutes this century.  I'd like to thank all of the scientists, engineers, mechanics, civil servants, support staff, and everyone else at NASA and JPL who made them possible.

I, however, missed Curiosity's landing, being stuck on a delayed flight to Tuscon, Arizona when the bits came in from Mars.

So what really made last night's Mars experience possible was communication.  Not just radio communication across interplanetary space, but human-to-human communication right here on Earth.  You texted.  You blogged.  You posted.  You called each other.  Your communication transformed Curiosity's landing from a science project understandable by only a few, into a mind-blowing experience shared by millions of people around the world.

That topic - communication - is the subject of this two-part update.  (Most of our technical work this week focussed on SkyCube's radio, and we'll cover that in part two.)

Social Media Update: Thank You, Captain Sulu!

This morning, we had a shout out from George Takei on Facebook.  If you're reading this, please thank George back by supporting his new musical, Allegiance.  It's about a not-so-proud moment in our history; about preventing ourselves from making those mistakes again; and, in the end, uniting people across great cultural divides.  In many ways, those are SkyCube's goals, too.

Please also welcome The Social Media Monthly as SkyCube's second major corporate sponsor.  TSMM - the product of another successful Kickstarter campaign - will be providing regular updates on our progress to their followers as well.

Both of these things represent the kind of communication we need to make SkyCube a success.  You don't have to be a Star Trek star, or own a magazine.  You just need to talk to people, share your excitement, and bring them aboard.  You already have the tools - you just need to use them.

In a week, we can double again.

Best regards,

-Tim, Chris, Scott, Bill, David - both of you! - Mark, Kevin, Tyler, and the rest of Team SkyCube.

2,711
Backers
$116,890
pledged of $82,500 goal
0
seconds to go

Funding period
Jul 14, 2012 - Sep 12, 2012 (60 days)

  • Pledge $1 or more

    262 backers

    Sponsors 10 seconds of the mission. You can broadcast one (1) 120-character message from the satellite.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $6 or more

    496 backers Limited (9504 of 10000 left)

    Sponsors 1 minute of the mission. You can broadcast six (6) 120-character messages from space, and request one (1) image from the satellite.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $10 or more

    1016 backers Limited (4984 of 6000 left)

    Sponsors 100 seconds of the mission. You can broadcast ten (10) 120-character messages from space, and request two (2) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $20 or more

    84 backers Limited (2916 of 3000 left)

    Sponsors 3 minutes of the mission. You can broadcast twenty (20) 120-character messages from space, and request three (3) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $30 or more

    279 backers

    Sponsors 5 minutes of the mission. You can broadcast thirty (30) 120-character messages from space, and request five (5) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $60 or more

    303 backers Limited (697 of 1000 left)

    Sponsors 10 minutes of the mission. We'll send you a SkyCube mission T-shirt. And you can broadcast sixty (60) 120-character messages from space, and request six (6) images from the satellite.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $100 or more

    175 backers

    Sponsors 15 minutes of the mission. An ideal family pack - we'll send you two (2) SkyCube mission T-shirts! And you can broadcast one hundred (100) 120-character messages from the satellite, and request twenty (20) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $150 or more

    11 backers Limited (89 of 100 left)

    Sponsors 25 minutes of the mission. An ideal family pack - we'll send you two (2) SkyCube mission T-shirts! You'll get a choice of a one-year digital subscription to either Sky & Telescope or The Social Media Monthly magazine. And you can broadcast one hundred fifty (150) 120-character messages from the satellite, and request twenty-five (25) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Oct 2012
  • Pledge $250 or more

    10 backers All gone!

    Sponsors 40 minutes of the mission. A great classroom treat - we'll send you a 1/3-scale, 3D printed model of SkyCube that you can float witha helium balloon (included). We'll also send you four (4) SkyCube mission T-shirts. You'll get a choice of a one-year digital subscription to either Sky & Telescope or The Social Media Monthly magazine. And you can broadcast two hundred fifty (250) 120-character messages from the satellite, and request forty (40) images from the satellite at any time during the mission.

    Estimated delivery: Oct 2012
  • Pledge $600 or more

    5 backers Limited (95 of 100 left)

    Sponsors 1 hour of the mission. Great for classrooms or schools! We'll send you a flying SpaceX Falcon 9 model rocket, and ten (10) SkyCube mission T-shirts. You can broadcast six hundred (600) 120-character messages from space, and request up to one hundred (100) images from the satellite.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $1,000 or more

    10 backers Limited (50 of 60 left)

    Sponsors 2 hours of the mission - a great high school or university classroom sponsorship package. We'll send you a radio receiver which you can use to detect transmissions from SkyCube and other satellites already in orbit! You'll also get a flying SpaceX Falcon 9 model rocket, and twenty (20) SkyCube mission T-shirts. You can broadcast one thousand (1000) 120-character messages from space, and request up to two hundred (200) images from the satellite.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $6,000 or more

    3 backers Limited (7 of 10 left)

    Sponsors 12 hours of the mission. We'll provide one launch viewing ticket, and round-trip airfare for one person to Cape Canaveral from anywhere in the continental US, for you to see the satellite lift off! We'll send you the same rewards as our $1,000 sponsors (amateur satellite radio, SpaceX model rocket, 20 T-shirts). You can also send up to to six thousand (6000) messages from space, and request up to one thousand (1000) images from orbit.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013
  • Pledge $10,000 or more

    0 backers Limited (6 of 6 left)

    Sponsors one full day of the mission - and we'll let you operate SkyCube for that whole day! We'll provide launch viewing tickets and round trip airfare for two (2) people to Cape Canaveral from anywhere in the continental US to watch the satellite lift off. Once it's in orbit, you'll have exclusive use of SkyCube for one full day! Send up to ten thousand (10,000) messages from space, request up to two thousand (2000) images - even make a movie of the Earth from orbit! Includes all rewards for our $1000 sponsors as well.

    Estimated delivery: Mar 2013