CubeSat Camp Portland3
Description
Campers will use programmable sensor packages and 3D printed cases to build their own CubeSat modules. CubeSats are designed to be nanosatellites and while ours won't be going into space, they are very similar in design as the 1200 CubeSats that have gone into space so far.

Each CubeSat is 10cm x 10cm x 10cm and contains a sensor pack, a controller, a power supply, and a data storage unit. Each camper will be able to design a sensor mission for their CubeSat and we will be bench testing them and then at the end of the week, weather allowing, the campers will go to a nearby airfield and their CubeSats will be taken up to a high altitude (14,000 feet) and the CubeSats will collect data that the students will then be able to analyze when the CubeSats are returned to Earth.

Campers will be able to keep their CubeSats at the end of the camp and the programming language is free so they will be able to continue using it and reprogramming it on their own.

This program will be running on the Portland campus of USM.

If weather is bad during the camp week, a rescheduled launch will be performed and campers will be able to come out to the launch field and do the launch at that time, unfortunately transportation may not be available on rain dates.

Ages: 13-17

This camp includes a field trip, weather permitting, to the Skydive New England Airport in Lebanon, Maine.

Want to learn more about our camps? Check out our website here: https://usm.maine.edu/stem-outreach/stem-camps/

Camp pricing:

The University of Southern Maine is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization, and we do everything in our power to keep our camps affordable for Maine families. At the same time we make an effort to staff with the best mentors for our campers, we do this by employing classroom educators, university faculty/staff, industry experts, and college undergraduate & graduate students.


With that being said, our biggest expense each year is our camp staff wages. As the cost of living, and the cost of wages increase, it directly impacts the cost to run our camps. Please keep this in mind as you’re browsing our selection of camps, and understand that we do everything we can to keep our camps affordable.

Possible Effects from 2025 Tariffs:

Please note that it is projected that there will be new tariffs going into effect starting early in 2025 that may directly impact some of our most critical camp equipment. This may impact any camp that has take-home electronics equipment (such as “3D Printing & Design”, “Build Your Own Computer Camp”, and “CubeSat Camp”), the cost of the materials may increase as much as 35%. At the moment “we don’t know” means “we don’t know” with regards to how this will impact the cost to run the program.

We are working to mitigate that by ordering this equipment early, but we are preparing for the cost of 3D printers, computer hardware, and any other electronics equipment to increase significantly. If this ends up happening, we will work with families directly to find the best solution in this scenario, but it may result in an add-on cost to camper families.
Location:
University of Southern Maine - Portland
Dates:
7/7/2025 9:00 AM - 7/11/2025 3:30 PM
Time:
9:00 AM - 3:30 PM
Ages:
Ages 13 - 17
Cost:
$565.00
Availability:
This session has openings
Registration will end on 7/5/2025.
Discounts
Multi-Week Discount
If a camper is enrolled in multiple weeks, or siblings are registered, each week receives a $20 discount.		$20.00