A SMALL Scots start-up company is about to launch its own satellite into space – which is the size of a drinks can.

Alba Orbital, based in Glasgow, has created the cuboid shaped satellite to be used to monitor aeroplanes.

And after a year’s development, they are ready to see it launched into space on the back of a Russian rocket early next year.

The satellite – which is no bigger than a can of Coke – is the smallest of its kind made in the UK, and will be deployed in a pod, before blasting out into the darkness of the solar system.

Tom Walkinshaw, 26, who owns the company, said: “It’s really exciting and it’s the goal of the company. But we’re not there yet – it needs to launch successfully.

“We’re focused on getting it finished. We hope it’s the first of many and we can showcase our technology.”

Alba Orbital’s satellite will be launched with hundreds of others – some 200 times bigger.

Tom said: “Ours will be one of the satellites on board when it launches in the south part of Russia.

“The biggest on board is 110kg – ours is half a kilogram – and 200 times our size.”

“Ours is tracking planes from space.”

PocketQube satellites are the cheapest to launch and “relatively” cheap to make.

Tom said: “The smaller you make it the lower cost it is. It’s around six figures.

“We’re in partnership with the European Space Agency and the Innovate UK space team in a technology development project.

“It’s our first satellite and our technology is going into space for the first time. It’s quite a big deal for us.”

Tom first started Alba Orbital from his bedroom after graduating from university and wanting to work in the space industry.

He said: “I couldn’t get a job in the industry in Glasgow so my only option was to start a company.”

“It started off in my bedroom three years ago.”

There are now three of them working in their office at The Whisky Bond, near Port Dundas, but they have a total of five full time staff.

They plan to continue to make PocketQube satellites.

Satellites are launched into space every two to three months and used for projects such as science missions,

There are 1,000 satellites in space currently, and are used for a range of purposes, such as in space missions, flight pictures and GPS.

Smaller satellites are used for earth observation.

Former first minister Alex Salmond visited Alba Orbital yesterday to look at their satellite, made with picotechnology – which is smaller than nanotechnology.

He admitted to having a fascination with space technology and said they had considered involving a small satellite in the Opening Ceremony of Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games in 2012 after visiting a similar company also based in the city.

The MP for Gordon said: “I’m fascinated by this sort of stuff.“When I went to Clyde Space two or three years back, when the Commonwealth Games were on I actually thought of getting one of Scotland’s wee satellites passing over Celtic Park for the Opening Ceremony, which we weren’t able to do.
“It really stretches the imagination.”