The Mission
The CanSat competition is an international educational program organized by ESERO in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA). Students design, build, and launch a satellite the size of a soda can, simulating a real space mission while gaining hands-on experience in aerospace engineering.
Team Lunaris-X, from Keizer Karel College in Amstelveen, is developing a fully functional CanSat capable of environmental measurements, live telemetry, and advanced post-flight analysis.
Mission Objectives
Primary Mission
Measure air temperature and air pressure continuously throughout the flight. The collected data is transmitted to the ground station during descent and stored locally as a fail-safe. Pressure data is converted into altitude, allowing reconstruction of the complete flight profile.
Secondary Mission
Record the CanSat’s orientation, rotation, and stability using a 9-axis IMU. By combining this data with altitude measurements from the primary mission, a 3D reconstruction of the flight path and attitude is created, revealing dynamics that are not visible from video recordings alone.
Innovation & Modernization
Second Generation Design
In addition to completing our primary and secondary missions, we are proud to present the first-ever second-generation CanSat, representing a major step forward in design and functionality. Through extensive research and experimentation, we have incorporated newer, faster microcontrollers and more efficient system designs, setting a precedent for future teams. This pioneering approach not only improves performance and reduces costs but also simplifies construction, making advanced CanSat technology more accessible.
While fully complying with the current competition requirements, we hope that the insights gained from our design choices can contribute to the evolution of future CanSat designs and inspire improvements in upcoming editions of the competition.Second Generation CanSat – A First
Why This Approach?
Engineering Insight
Iterative design and modernization reflect real aerospace practice, where new technologies are constantly integrated to improve performance, efficiency, and reliability.
Impact on Future Teams
By exploring more efficient designs and modern components, we aim to provide ideas that future CanSat teams can build on, inspiring innovation and raising the overall standard of the competition.