ArgoMoon CubeSat
Argotec Srl
6U CubeSat technology demonstrator deployed from NASA SLS Artemis I — Italian deep space small satellite demonstrating proximity operations and imaging in cislunar space.
Technical specifications
- Form Factor
- 6U CubeSat
- Launch Vehicle
- NASA SLS Block 1 (Artemis I), November 2022
- Orbit
- Cislunar / deep space (translunar injection)
- Payload
- High-resolution optical camera
- Mission
- Proximity imaging of SLS ICPS, deep space tech demonstration
- Customer
- NASA / Italian Space Agency (ASI)
About
ArgoMoon is a 6U CubeSat developed by Argotec for NASA and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) as part of the Artemis I secondary payload manifest. Launched in November 2022 aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1 configuration, ArgoMoon was one of ten CubeSats deployed from the ICPS upper stage following Orion separation on its trajectory toward the Moon.
The primary mission objectives were to demonstrate Italian small satellite capability in deep space, to image the ICPS upper stage during Orion separation (providing documentary evidence for engineering review), and to validate spacecraft systems in the high-radiation cislunar environment far beyond the Van Allen belts. ArgoMoon carried a high-resolution optical camera and attitude control sufficient for precision pointing required for proximity imaging operations.
ArgoMoon represented the first Italian satellite operated in deep space and demonstrated that 6U CubeSat platforms can survive and operate in high-radiation environments encountered during translunar injection. The mission established Argotec as one of only a handful of companies worldwide with demonstrated small satellite deep space heritage. Data from ArgoMoon’s systems contributed to subsequent Argotec missions including LICIACube, the 6U CubeSat that imaged the DART asteroid impact in 2022.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.
