RACE

The Radiometer Atmospheric CubeSat Experiment, or RACE, is a test of technology designed to improve NASA's Earth science and space exploration capabilities. The mission consists of a compact radiometer instrument that will collect Earth science data for use in weather forecasting and climate models, packed into a satellite about the size of a loaf of bread, called a CubeSat.

The RACE science instrument was designed and built at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the satellite was built by students at the Texas Spacecraft Laboratory of the University of Texas at Austin. CubeSats are now being used by NASA scientists and engineers who are exploring methods that would allow the agency to quickly build and launch science instruments for little cost and risk.