Key takeaways What: A hands-on CubeSat workshop at IIT Kharagpur, run by Hexstar Universe. Who: 50+ IIT Kharagpur students. Result: 30 CubeSat kits built from scratch, each tested on a live Hexstar Universe telemetry dashboard. Skills: Satellite subsystems, sensor integration, wireless (LoRa) communication and real-time data analysis. Best for: Tech fests, robotics and space clubs, department workshops, competitions and institutional STEM programs. What happens when engineering students build a satellite themselves? At IIT Kharagpur, more than 50 students participated in a hands-on CubeSat workshop conducted by Hexstar Universe. With 30 CubeSat kits, students explored satellite engineering by assembling their own kits, working with onboard electronics and testing their creations using the Hexstar Universe dashboard.The workshop was designed to give students a practical introduction to satellite technology, bringing together hardware, software and engineering concepts in one experience. For us at Hexstar Universe, the idea was simple: make space technology something students can actually build, experiment with and understand. What is a CubeSat, and what is a CubeSat workshop? A CubeSat is a small, standardised satellite built around a cube-shaped structure. Universities and space agencies use CubeSats because they make real space missions practical for small teams. A CubeSat workshop brings that mission workflow into a classroom or lab. Students work with an educational CubeSat kit that has a structure, onboard electronics, sensors and a wireless link to a ground station. The kit is a table-top and field-friendly learning platform that simulates the mission workflow. It is not an orbital satellite. Inside the IIT Kharagpur CubeSat workshop Our flagship workshop takes students through the essential stages of a satellite mission, from understanding subsystems to operating a ground station. 1. Assemble: build your own CubeSat Students put together the satellite structure and onboard electronics, and learn how the subsystems fit together. 2. Integrate: bring the satellite to life They connect sensors, power and communication systems. The kit measures temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and altitude, plus acceleration and rotation through its motion sensors. Depending on the kit version, it also carries GPS. Students see how a satellite senses its surroundings and prepares data for transmission. 3. Communicate: make your ground station Students set up a wireless LoRa 433 MHz link, receive live telemetry and visualise it in real time. 4. Test on the Hexstar Universe dashboard Each team verified its build on our ground-station-style dashboard. It shows live graphs, orientation and motion, and raw sensor data, the way industry mission-control tools present it. Optional: a mission beyond the classroom Any workshop can be extended into a supervised balloon launch or deployment mission. Students prepare the payload, run pre-launch checks, collect mission data and analyse the results. What did IIT Kharagpur students learn? How the subsystems of a satellite work together (structure, power, sensing, communication) How to integrate and debug real sensors and electronics How a wireless telemetry link and ground-station flow operate How to read, visualise and interpret live mission data How to work as a team, the way a real mission team does Most kits stop at wiring and code. Ours add a mission-style dashboard, so students learn to interpret data as well as generate it. The data they collect can go straight into a project report or portfolio. Why hands-on space workshops work better than lectures Space science is taught widely, but space technology is rarely experienced. Students often reach college or internships without ever working with real sensors and telemetry, communication links, mission-style data logging or structured reporting. That leaves a gap between what students know and what industry expects. A hands-on workshop closes that gap in a few hours. Students build, operate and interpret a real system, so the concepts stick. They also gain practical engineering experience, an end-to-end view of a mission and the confidence to enter SpaceTech domains. Our workshops and competitions across India and abroad IIT Kharagpur is one of many institutions where we've run hands-on space and robotics programs. Here is a selection. Institution / EventLocationWhat happenedIIT KharagpurIndia50+ students built and tested 30 CubeSat kitsGeetanjali Institute of Technical StudiesIndia245+ students joined and built 20+ CubeSats, which were launched to the stratosphere. Recognised as India's biggest CubeSat workshopBirla Vishwakarma MahavidyalayaIndia70+ students built 10+ CubeSatsChrist UniversityIndia50+ students learned and tested CubeSat kitsCorporation school, CoimbatoreIndia20+ students from Classes 8 and 9 tested CubeSats and launched one by helium balloon to about 1 km. Covered on the front page of The New Indian ExpressC-DOTIndia5+ scientists joined a CubeSat training programBahrain Space AgencyBahrain50+ students from Bahraini institutions joined a hands-on workshop"Madar Oman" training programOmanCubeSat kits and software used in a program organised by ETCO Space with the Youth Center, OmanWater rocket competition, Heritage Institute of TechnologyKolkata, IndiaWe organised what was billed as India's biggest water rocket competition in 2023FIRST LEGO League, GermanyGermanyTeam Masch Misch used our Verner Kit and won the research category The same format has worked for primary and secondary school students, university undergraduates and working scientists. Our track record 21 institutions worked with 25 workshops conducted 926+ students trained 1,000+ CubeSat kits delivered Kits in 91 countries India's biggest CubeSat workshop, March 2026 Kits purchased by organisations including Apple, NAVER, the University of Oxford, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Madras, York University, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, C-DOT and the Bahrain Space Agency Fun and unique workshop ideas for tech fests and competitions A tech fest works best when it offers a headline event and something every visitor can try. These formats work well for colleges, schools and student clubs: CubeSat build-and-test workshop. Every participant builds a kit and tests it on the live dashboard. CanSat competition. Teams design a payload, deploy it, recover it and submit a mission report. Water rocket contest. It scales to large groups, and students iterate on stability and design. We ran one of India's largest at Heritage Institute of Technology, Kolkata. Stratospheric balloon launch. A build-and-test workshop turns into a full launch mission with real flight data. Robotics plus space add-on. Sensor-based experiments extend existing robotics and STEM programs. Ground station challenge. Teams track and communicate with a satellite in a timed event. We also offer faculty training on using the kits in the curriculum, custom dashboards for institution-specific missions, and help with competition readiness for ISRO/IN-SPACe challenges, CanSat and CubeSat competitions. Kits behind our workshops KitBest forLive data pointsCubeSat Kit Gen 1First-time SpaceTech learners, classroom basics8+CubeSat Kit Gen 2University labs, space clubs, long-range telemetry (up to 15 km) with GPS12+CubeSat Kit Gen 2 v2Capstone projects, research demos, competitions, with camera20+CanSat KitStudent competitions, outdoor deployment and recovery missions12+Stratospheric Launch Kit (Verner Kit)Near-space payload experiments, robotics team testing25+Ground Station KitTracking satellites and enabling ground communicationn/aWater Rocket KitSchool events, mass workshops, STEM fairsn/a Every CubeSat kit comes with setup and onboarding sessions, user manuals, 24/7 technical support and guidance on experiment design and data analysis. About Hexstar Universe Hexstar Universe Private Limited is a space technology and education company. We help schools, colleges and students explore real satellite and space technologies through hands-on hardware kits, live online courses and masterclasses, mentorship and project guidance, and end-to-end support for space-tech initiatives. Our goal is to bring real, practical space engineering into every classroom, from primary school up to university. 30 CubeSat Kits and a Hands-On Engineering Experience A CubeSat is a miniature satellite built around a standardised form factor. Although compact in size, it introduces several important engineering concepts, including electronics, sensors, communication systems, data collection and embedded hardware.During the workshop, students worked with 30 CubeSat kits and assembled their own satellite units. They explored the hardware, understood the role of different components and experienced the process of integrating a complete system.For students, there is a significant difference between seeing satellite components in a presentation and actually working with them. Building a system provides an opportunity to understand how its components interact, why integration matters and what needs to be considered during testing.That was the central idea behind this workshop: learning satellite engineering through practical experience. Testing the CubeSat Kits Using the Hexstar Universe Dashboard Building the hardware was only one part of the experience. Students also tested their assembled CubeSat kits using the Hexstar Universe dashboard.The dashboard connected the hardware experience with a software-based interface, allowing students to explore how satellite systems can be monitored and tested.This introduced an important aspect of engineering: a satellite is not just a collection of electronic components. It is a system where hardware, software, communication and data work together.By connecting their assembled kits with the dashboard, students could experience this relationship more directly.Understanding how hardware communicates with software is an important part of modern engineering, particularly in fields such as embedded systems, robotics, electronics and satellite technology. Why Are Hands-On CubeSat Workshops Important for Engineering Students? Engineering students participate in many technical seminars, coding sessions, robotics activities and classroom-based learning programs. These experiences provide valuable knowledge, but practical experimentation adds another dimension to learning.A CubeSat workshop brings multiple engineering disciplines together through one activity.Electronics and Embedded Systems: Students get introduced to the electronics involved in satellite systems and understand how different components work together.Robotics and Hardware Integration: Working with physical hardware helps students understand system integration and practical engineering challenges.Satellite Engineering: A CubeSat provides an accessible introduction to miniature satellite architecture and its fundamental subsystems.Software and Data Visualisation: Dashboard-based testing helps connect hardware with software and data.Problem-Solving: Assembly and testing encourage students to observe, experiment and understand how a system behaves.This makes CubeSat workshops relevant not only to aerospace engineering students but also to those studying electronics, computer science, instrumentation and other engineering disciplines. Frequently asked questions What is a CubeSat workshop? It is a hands-on session where students assemble an educational CubeSat, integrate sensors and a radio link, and receive live telemetry on a ground-station dashboard. Is the CubeSat kit a real satellite? It is an educational kit that replicates the architecture and workflow of a satellite mission. Launch-oriented programs can carry it on a balloon into the stratosphere. Do students need prior experience? No. Our workshops have included school students in Classes 8 and 9 as well as university students and scientists. How many students can take part? Workshops so far have ranged from about 20 participants to more than 245 in a single event. Can a CubeSat workshop be part of a tech fest or robotics competition? Yes. CubeSat build workshops, CanSat challenges and water rocket contests all fit tech fests, STEM fairs and inter-college competitions. Do you offer a launch component? Yes. Supervised launch or deployment missions are available as an optional extension. How do we bring a workshop to our institution? Email network@hexstaruniverse.com and tell us your student count, event format and dates. You can also explore our kits at store.hexstaruniverse.com and our online courses and mentorship at hexstar.academy. Bring a CubeSat mission to your campus Partner with Hexstar Universe for a workshop, a launch-oriented program or an institutional space-technology initiative. Our aim is to make space accessible for every student, from primary school to university. Website: hexstaruniverse.com | Store: store.hexstaruniverse.com | Academy: hexstar.academy | Email: network@hexstaruniverse.com
