C3D CubeSat Camera
XCAM
Space-qualified modular CubeSat imaging system supporting up to three CMOS sensors with TRL 9 flight heritage since 2014.
Key figurescomparable across the catalogue
- Mass
- 0.085 kg
- Power
- 0.845 W
- TRL
- 9
Normalised to common units so this product can be compared with others in its category. The supplier's own wording is below.
As published by the supplier
- Spatial resolution (at 650 km)
- 360 m GSD
- Image sensor
- 1.3 MP CMOS, 5/4 aspect ratio, RGB or B&W
- Pixel size
- 5.3 um
- Sensor resolution
- 1280 x 1024 pixels
- Standard lens
- 9.6 mm F/3.0 COTS
- Wavelength range
- 400-650 nm (RGB)
- Exposure control
- Auto or fixed
- Data format
- 8-bit raw + 1:10 thumbnail
- On-board memory (SDRAM)
- 16 MB
- On-board memory (Flash)
- 8 MB
- Image compression
- JPEG-LS lossless ~50%
- Data interfaces
- I2C or SPI
- Board dimensions
- 9.5 x 9.1 x 2.7 cm
- Mass (board + 1x WFI)
- 85 g
- Peak power consumption
- 845 mW
- Operating temperature
- -25 to +65 deg C
- Survival temperature
- -35 to +75 deg C
- TRL
- 9
About
The C3D is a space-qualified imaging system designed for CubeSat and small satellite applications. Its modular architecture supports up to three CMOS sensors for multiple fields of view or focal lengths, enabling wide-field Earth observation, near and far-field imaging, and both monochrome and RGB configurations. The platform delivers high-quality images for mission monitoring and analysis with proven in-orbit reliability.
Onboard lossless JPEG-LS image compression optimises data storage and transmission on resource-constrained spacecraft. Applications span Earth observation of land, ocean, vegetation, and weather, spacecraft deployment verification (solar panels, antennas, booms), and educational missions. The system has achieved a 100% mission success rate across all flights since 2014, including UKube-1, AlSat Nano, and MIRSAT-1.
The C3D controller board interfaces via I2C or SPI and provides 16 MB SDRAM / 8 MB Flash onboard memory. Auto or fixed exposure control and 8-bit raw output with 1:10 thumbnail generation are standard. The design is compatible with the PC104 form factor and has been tested over the full -35 to +75 deg C survival temperature range.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.