Books¶
Books, handbooks and technical references for CubeSat development: the foundational texts on spacecraft design and systems engineering, subsystem references, and the handful of open-access books worth reading first.
Most of the classics are expensive. Before buying, check your university library, and check the open-access section below – several good texts cost nothing.
CubeSat-specific¶
- CubeSat Handbook: From Mission Design to Operations
Link– Chantal Cappelletti, Simone Battistini and Benjamin K. Malphrus (eds.), Academic Press/Elsevier, 2021. The most complete single volume dedicated to CubeSats, covering mission design, subsystems, testing, launch and operations. The natural starting reference if you buy one CubeSat book
Space mission and systems engineering¶
- Space Mission Engineering: The New SMAD
Link– James R. Wertz, David F. Everett and Jeffery J. Puschell (eds.), Microcosm Press, 2011 (Space Technology Library Vol. 28). The standard reference for space mission design, universally known as "SMAD". Broad rather than deep, and the book most often cited when someone needs a first-order estimate for anything - Spacecraft Systems Engineering, 4th Edition
Link– Peter Fortescue, Graham Swinerd and John Stark (eds.), Wiley, 2011. A subsystem-by-subsystem treatment with more engineering depth than SMAD in several areas. Widely used as a university textbook
Subsystem references¶
- Fundamentals of Spacecraft Attitude Determination and Control
Link– F. Landis Markley and John L. Crassidis, Springer, 2014. The definitive modern text on ADCS: attitude representations, estimation, sensors, actuators and control. Mathematically serious, and the reference to reach for when a CubeSat ADCS problem goes beyond B-dot - Spacecraft Thermal Control Handbook, Volume I: Fundamental Technologies
Link– David G. Gilmore (ed.), The Aerospace Press. The standard reference for spacecraft thermal design, covering environments, analysis methods, coatings, insulation and hardware - Orbital Mechanics for Engineering Students
Link– Howard D. Curtis, Elsevier. The most approachable orbital mechanics textbook for engineers, with worked examples and accompanying MATLAB code. A good route into the material behind orbits and TLEs - Fundamentals of Astrodynamics and Applications
Link– David A. Vallado, Microcosm Press. The practitioner's astrodynamics reference, notable for treating the algorithms and reference frames in enough detail to implement them – including SGP4, which matters if you are writing your own propagation
Open-access books and long-form guides¶
These cost nothing and are worth reading.
- A Guide to CubeSat Mission and Bus Design
Link– Frances Zhu, University of Hawaiʻi. Open textbook (CC BY 4.0) covering mission design, subsystems, power budgeting and ADCS, built around the Artemis CubeSat Kit, with worked examples and companion spreadsheets - NASA CubeSat 101: Basic Concepts and Processes for First-Time CubeSat Developers
PDF– The standard beginner's guide, focused on the programmatic and regulatory path as much as the engineering. Free - NASA Systems Engineering Handbook (NASA/SP-2016-6105 Rev 2)
PDF– The reference on requirements, verification, validation and project life cycle. Written for much larger programs, but the concepts scale down cleanly. Free - NASA State of the Art in Small Spacecraft Technology
Link– Not a book exactly, but a comprehensive, annually updated survey of every smallsat subsystem with current vendor hardware and performance figures. Cited throughout the development pages of this site. Free
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