science

PRESat

PRESat is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand PRESat rather than just read about it. In short: PharmaSat Risk Evaluation Satellite (or PRESat) nanosatellite, for NASA, was about the size of a loaf of bread, weighed about 4.5 kg (9.9 lb) and was constructed in six months. Spacecraft The PRESat, 3U CubeSat, contained a micro-laboratory with a controlled environment packed with sensors and optical systems that could detect the growth, density and health of yeast cells.

Key takeaways

PRESat belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect PRESat to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of PRESat from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

PharmaSat Risk Evaluation Satellite (or PRESat) nanosatellite, for NASA, was about the size of a loaf of bread, weighed about 4.5 kg (9.9 lb) and was constructed in six months.

Spacecraft The PRESat, 3U CubeSat, contained a micro-laboratory with a controlled environment packed with sensors and optical systems that could detect the growth, density and health of yeast cells. PRESat was to demonstrate its ability to create a space science laboratory using environment control techniques to monitor the levels of pressure, temperature and acceleration.

Launch The satellite was lost in the failure of the third Falcon 1 launch, on 3 August 2008, at 03:34 UTC.

Mission Although NASA was not able to test this payload in space, NASA mission managers and payload engineers achieved success in this low-cost mission by rapidly pulling together expertise from across the agency to develop, build and ground-test a fundamental space biology micro-laboratory. The communications team also successfully established a fully operational South Pacific Ground Communication System using two ground stations, which were transported and installed at Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands and at the Universidad Centroamericana in El Salvador.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with PRESat

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what PRESat claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to PRESat before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about PRESat ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of PRESat

In research: PRESat appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses PRESat in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: PRESat is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2008 in the Marshall Islands, American spacecraft stubs, CubeSats, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for PRESat outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study PRESat in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what PRESat means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain PRESat out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is PRESat in simple terms?

PharmaSat Risk Evaluation Satellite (or PRESat) nanosatellite, for NASA, was about the size of a loaf of bread, weighed about 4.5 kg (9.9 lb) and was constructed in six months. Spacecraft The PRESat, 3U CubeSat, contained a micro-laboratory with a controlled environment packed with sensors and opti…

Why does PRESat matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study PRESat?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on PRESat.