NASA CubeSat Focuses on Instrument Calibration Enhancement

NASA is preparing to launch a new lunar calibration technology demonstration called Arcstone to improve future space research. Launching as part of the agency’s CubeSat Launch Initiative, Arcstone will use sunlight reflected off the Moon to fine-tune spacecraft instruments that study Earth and other celestial bodies.  

Arstone will launch aboard the Transporter-14 rideshare mission with SpaceX via launch integrator Maverick Space Systems from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on June 22, 2025. 

Measuring the reflected light from Earth is difficult because the atmosphere distorts the light, so Arcstone will be positioned in low Earth orbit where it can observe both the Moon and the Sun without interference. This 6U CubeSat, about the size of a shoebox (roughly 10.5 inches cubed), will measure what’s known as “spectral reflectance,” or how much light the Moon reflects at different wavelengths. The technology demonstration aims to overcome calibration challenges from space and increase the accuracy of Earth-monitoring and remote-sensing instruments for progressively complex missions that current methods cannot meet.

The information gained from Arcstone also will help establish an international standard for absolute lunar calibration, an important step in improving the accuracy of Earth viewing and monitoring sensors and constellation systems.

NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative provides a low-cost way for small satellite payloads built by NASA centers, U.S. universities, high schools, and non-profit organizations to conduct science and technology demonstrations in space. Once the CubeSat selections are made, NASA’s Launch Services Program pairs them with launch opportunities that are best suited to carry them as auxiliary payloads.

For more information about NASA’s CubeSat Launch Initiative, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/kennedy/launch-services-program/cubesat-launch-initiative/