NUSAT (Northern Utah Satellite) is an air traffic control radar calibration satellite built by Weber State University (WSU) and Utah State University (USU) students and staff at Ogden, Utah. It was deployed from a modified Get-Away Special canister on the Space Shuttle Challenger. NUSAT measured 48 centimeters in diameter and was an 18-sided cylinder. It orbited for 20 months until reentering on the 15 December 1986, and demonstrated that satellites could be built small, simple, and at low cost for special applications. With this satellite, WSU and USU shared the claim to be the first American University to place a satellite in space.

 

shuttle deployment	Apr. 29, 1985
mission	STS-51B
orbit	318 × 339 km × 57.0°
mass	54 kg