Who We Are

UC CubeCats is a student-led, undergraduate research laboratory founded in 2015 at the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering and Applied Science. Our goal is to provide students with a team-based opportunity to positively impact the scientific community and the University of Cincinnati, as well as advance their professional careers, through education and experience in spacecraft development. Members of our organization can gain experience designing, building, and operating flightworthy aerospace systems (particularly CubeSats and High-Altitude Balloons), network with industry professionals through conferences and collaborations, and apply concepts learned in the classroom to real-world projects.

What We Do

CubeSat Program

Our CubeSat Program is currently working on two CubeSat projects (one under active development and one at the preliminary design level), a Ground Station for communicating with future missions, and a Helmhotz Cage for ground testing of satellite systems.

CATiSE Program

The CubeCats Applied Training in Space Exploration (CATiSE) Program is designed to teach new members (espcially freshmen) the systems engineering, project leadership, and technical skills needed to design and operate missions in a space-like environments.

Open Source

Our work is intended be useful to the entire community, especially new groups just starting out. All software, designs, and schematics created for our projects are or will be open sourced, as well as lessons learned while working on our projects.

The Latest

August 18th, 2025 - LEOPARDSat-1 is being featured in the Cincinnati Observatory's exhibit From Atomic Labs to Launch Pads: Ohio's Race to the Stars, as part of a renewed partnership with UC CubeCats. Cincinnati Observatory LinkedIn