IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge

Sixth IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge – Call for Proposals

Topic: A 1P PocketQube to monitor Radio-Frequency Interference (RFI) in Microwave Radiometry bands

Overview

IEEE GRSS invites student teams worldwide to propose, design, and build a payload for a 1P PocketQube (PQ), a 5×5×5 cm³ size pico-satellite dedicated to in-orbit RFI monitoring across priority passive-sensing bands used by current and upcoming microwave radiometry missions. The 6th SGC builds on the tradition of previous editions—hands-on projects tackling real remote-sensing challenges and culminating in public results at IGARSS—while introducing a spaceflight-grade, open, reproducible small-satellite platform. (GRSS-IEEE)

Scientific & Programmatic Context

Persistent and emerging RFI threatens the quality of passive microwave measurements (soil moisture, SST, sea ice, precipitation, temperature sounding, etc.). This challenge targets in-situ, spaceborne RFI situational awareness to inform mitigation measures for missions such as CryoRad (wideband 400–2000 MHz) and CIMR (L/C/X/K/Ka channels). Teams will design and deliver a flight-model PQ payload that characterizes occupancy, power spectral density, time–frequency dynamics, and geospatial statistics of RFI within the specified bands. (See “Target Bands” below).

PocketQube Platform: the IEEE GRSS Open PocketQube Kit

All teams will base their pico-satellite payload on the IEEE GRSS Open PocketQube Kit (mechanical/electrical/software baselines and documentation), with repositories and wiki maintained by UPC NanoSat Lab. If needed, teams may propose justified modifications (mass, power, EMC, interfaces) required by the RFI monitoring payload they design. (wiki.nanosatlab.space)

• Project page / docs (wiki): (wiki.nanosatlab.space)
• Hardware repository: (GitHub)
• Software repository (Lektron/PoCat lineage): (GitHub)
• ESA “Fly Your Satellite!” feature on PoCat-Lektron: (esa.int)

Target Bands for RFI Monitoring

Proposals shall address at least one of the following, with a compelling rationale for channelization, dynamic range, calibration, and on-board detection:

• CryoRad-like wideband: 400–2000 MHz (swept or sub-bands).
• CIMR L-band: 1.4135 GHz, BW 25 MHz → 1.401–1.426 GHz.
• CIMR C-band: 6.875 GHz, BW 400 MHz → 6.675–7.075 GHz.
• CIMR X-band: 10.65 GHz, BW 100 MHz → 10.60–10.70 GHz.
• CIMR K-band: 18.7 GHz, BW 200 MHz → 18.60–18.80 GHz.
• CIMR Ka-band: 36.5 GHz, BW 300 MHz → 36.35–36.65 GHz.

Expected Outcomes

• An open RFI monitoring payload compatible with the IEEE GRSS Open PocketQube, including the design (schematics, layout, Gerber files, BOM…): RF front end (LNA/filters/attenuators), spectrometer (e.g., FPGA, SDR-based, or using the own onboard computer), frequency/time references, onboard calibration (noise diode / reference) or if a RSSI is used, and on-board processing (feature extraction, compression), etc.
• Ground test campaign results (radiated/conducted interferences), on-air campaign with antenna pattern and system linearity characterization, and reproducible pipelines.
• Release of all code and data under permissive licenses in public repositories (GitHub + GRSS page).

Notes for proposing teams:

• Include strategies for detection (energy, time and/or frequency domains, spectral kurtosis, cyclostationarity), classification (narrowband, pulsed…), geolocation proxies (orbital correlation), and resilience (blanking, adaptive thresholds).
• Payload testing will be performed first at team’s premises using e.g. a Nucleo board with an STM32L microprocessor to mimic the PocketQube On Board Computer (OBC), later at UPC NanoSatLab premises by integrating it in a real 1P PocketQube.
• Teams willing to develop on their own the full 1P PocketQube following the IEEE GRSS Open PocketQube kit standard are welcome to do it, and may get additional financial support (within the maximum budget limit per team).

Eligibility & Team Composition

• Teams must be student-led (undergrad/grad), with at least one mentor from academia/industry.
• Strongly encouraged composition: electrical/electronic, telecommunications, aerospace engineers, and computer scientists (signal processing, embedded SW, ML).
• Commitment: Teams must demonstrate commitment for sustained participation during 2026–2027 (PDR→CDR→EM→FM milestones and reviews). Past SGCs typically span 18 months with formal design reviews; plan accordingly. Teams must commit also to attend submit a full abstract to IGARSS 2027, and attend the conference to present their results in a dedicated session, and to submit the full paper to the JSTARS Special Issue associated to IGARSS 2027.

Selection Criteria

Evaluations will weight:

1. Background of the team (relevant experience, labs, prior builds/tests).
2. Team composition & roles (coverage of RF/HW/SW/AIT, mission/ops).
3. Commitment & planning (resourcing, schedule realism, risk mitigation, QA).
4. Technical merit (RFI payload architecture, sensitivity, dynamic range, spectral/temporal resolution, calibration, EMC/EMI control, ITU-RR awareness).
5. Openness & impact (reusability, documentation quality, education/outreach).

Support & Budget

Subject to GRSS approval and available funds, selected teams may receive seed funding up to USD 10,000 per team, a travel grant up to 2,000 USD for one presenter per team to present at IGARSS 2027 in a dedicated session, and the publication fees of their JSTARS paper if accepted for publication.

Milestones & Reviews – Important Dates

• Project Kickoff & Requirements Review – January 2026
• Preliminary Design Review (PDR) — architecture, RF budget, sensitivity/RFI detection plan – April 2026
• Critical Design Review (CDR) — detailed design, EMC plan, test procedures – July 2026
• Engineering Model (EM) tests — functional/RF/thermal-vac…  – October 2026
• Flight Model (FM) AIT — environmental tests and end-to-end tests – March 2027
• Final Review and final paper submission to IGARSS 2027 – May 2027
• IGARSS Session — public presentation & dataset release

Application & Selection Process

Applications must follow the official SGC process described below. Only complete submissions will be considered.

Submission Package (max 15 pages, plus appendices)

1. Executive Summary (1 page): concept, bands covered, key innovation.
2. Technical Description:
   • RF architecture, filters/LNAs/attenuation plan, ADC/FPGA/SDR choice, spectrometer specs (RBW, VBW, ENOB), calibration (hot/cold, noise diode, use of RSSI as power detectors…), time/frequency reference, EMC design.
   • Performance budgets: sensitivity (K/Hz), dynamic range, out-of-band rejection, frequency accuracy/stability.
   • Detection & analytics: algorithms, on-board feature extraction/compression, downlink strategy.
   • Ground & in-orbit test plan: conducted/radiated tests, calibration validation, data products.
3. Mission & AIT plan: development phases (PDR/CDR/EM/FM), facilities, environmental tests. If the team does not these facilities, tests could be arranged free of charge at the UPC NanoSatLab (shipping and transportation are team’s responsibility).
4. Team & Governance: org chart, roles, advisor(s), risk & quality management.
5. Workplan & Commitment: 2026–2027 Gantt, reviews, internal gates, aligned with the general Milestones & Reviews.
6. Budget & Resource Plan (with open-source release plan).
7. Compliance: ITU-RR considerations (allocations, RR 5.340 zones, national regs), spectrum use during tests, export control. (Cite the regulations you rely upon.). Note: the PQ use LoRa ISM bands for communication.

Data, Software, and IP

All design files, software, and documentation must be released openly (permissive licenses). Derived RFI data products and analysis code must be archived in open repositories linked from the GRSS SGC page. Data sets could be used for future GRSS activities (e.g. hackathons, challenges etc.)

Submission of Applications

Please send your proposal BEFORE November 30^th 2025 at: 6.ieee.grss.sgc@gmail.com indicating “[6-IEEE-GRSS-SGC Proposal]” in the subject.

NO DEADLINE EXTENSIONS WILL BE GRANTED.

Fifth IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge 

IEEE GRSS is an international professional Society that seeks to engage students and young professionals in contributing to the solution of complex engineering problems within the scope of the Student Grand Challenges. IEEE GRSS has in the past sponsored four previous Student Grand Challenges related to remote sensing based on drones or remotely piloted aircraft systems, nanosatellites payloads, and marine plastic litter monitoring.

Fourth IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge 

IEEE GRSS is an international professional Society that seeks to engage students and young professionals in contributing to the solution of complex engineering problems within the scope of the Student Grand Challenges. IEEE GRSS has in the past sponsored three previous Student Grand Challenges related to remote sensing based on drones or remotely piloted aircraft systems, nanosatellites payloads, and marine plastic litter monitoring.

Important Dates

Application and Selection Process

Teams willing to participate must send a brief description of their mission concept (< 10 pages), indicating:

Team’s composition (5-10 members and an endorsing professor), background and expertise, motivation, and signed commitment letter for the whole duration of the project (see below).

Scientific rationale and feasibility of the proposed innovative techniques (i.e. “ways to conduct the observations and detect the whales”) are welcome.

Development plan, including testing, during the whole duration of the project (1.5 years), compliant with the challenge timeline shown below.

Budget proposal: Budget can be higher, but the GRSS request is limited to USD $8,000. Eligible expenses may include AWS computational resources, and purchase of one computer.

If the proposing team is not yet part of an already established GRSS Student Branch Chapter, it is important that they commit to form a new Chapter by the end of 2024.

The proposing team must commit to attending 30-minute weekly meetings in order to provide status updates and receive management and technical input from GRSS.

 A travel grant of up to USD $2,000 will be provided to one person per winning team to present their results at a special session at IGARSS 2025 in Brisbane, Australia.

Teams will be invited to submit their research work to JSTARS where their work will undergo the standard review process. Publication fees will be covered by GRSS in case of paper acceptance.

Teams are invited to submit their proposals before November 15, 2023, to: ieee.grss.4sgc@gmail.com indicating in the subject [4th GRSS Student Grand Challenge]. Proposals will be evaluated by the IEEE/GRSS SGC Steering Committee formed by Prof. A. Camps (UPC-Barcelona Tech, Spain), Prof. P. Gamba (U. Pavia, Italy), Dr. D. Kunkee (The Aerospace Corporation, USA), and Dr. T. Wang (JPL). Results will be announced on the GRSS website and by email to the participants by December 15, 2023.

Notes:

• The IGARSS travel grant and the JSTARS publication fees waiver will be in addition to the USD $8,000, but are provided only to teams that commit to the project, attend the progress meetings regularly, and perform successfully.

• All teams will retain all IP of their developments.

• Teams that may not be familiar with some of the above terms are invited to check, for example: www.smartsheet.com/content/design-review-checklist-templates

Winners in the Fifth Student Grand Challenge

We are delighted to announce the winners of the Fifth IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge, focusing on “End-to-End Remote Sensing Applications Based on Unmanned Vehicles,” which was announced in October 2024. The challenge received an unprecedented 32 outstanding proposals, reflecting the growing interest and innovation in this field.

After careful evaluation, we are pleased to present the six winning teams (listed in order of submission):

1. Real-time Disaster Response with Edge AI on UAVs
Wuhan University, China
Led by Prof. Bo Du

2. Development of an Autonomous IoT-based UAV for Real-Time Detection and Mapping of Environmental Hazards in Remote Regions
The Federal University of Technology, Nigeria
Led by Prof. Joseph Sunday Ojo

3. HexaAgro: AI-Driven Hexacopter for Precision Pest Management and Eco-Friendly Agriculture
University of Engineering and Management, India
Led by Dr. Subhajit Das

4. Unlocking Forest Vital Signs: High Spatiotemporal VOD Mapping at Large Scales Fusing GNSS-T and LiDAR Data
University of Georgia, USA
Led by Prof. Mehmet Kurum

5. Unmanned System for Profiling Air Pollutants and Atmospheric Parameters: A Complete Framework for Onboard Processing and Real-Time Data Analysis
IIT Indore, India
Led by Dr. Saurabh Das

6. Innovative Nodes for Tracking Emissions and Guarding Remote Sensing Bands Integrity (INTEGRITY)
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain
Led by Prof. Juan Ramos

The endorsing professors and student team leaders will be contacted shortly to commence project activities.

For more information about the challenge, please visit the IEEE GRSS website.

Winners in the Fourth Student Grand Challenge

1. Developing Image Processing and Image Classification Techniques for Detection and Tracking of Whales using Spaceborne Remote Sensing
Government Engineering College, Raipur(C.G), India
Dr. R. H. Talwekar

2. Enhancing Whale Tracking: Developing a Comprehensive Whale Detection Model using Satellite Imagery
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Huairou District, Beijing, China
Prof. Guoqing Li

3. Detection and Monitoring Whales Population and Migration from VHR Satellite Images using YOLOv8 Algorithm and Satellite Images Timestamp on a Mini-Computer
Telkom University, Bandung Regency, West Java, Indonesia
Prof. Edwar, S.T., M.T.

4. Image processing and classification techniques for detection and tracking of whales using space-borne remote sensing data
Velagapudi Ramakrishna Siddhartha Engineering College, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India
Prof. Dr S. Vasavi

5. Monitoring humpback whales in Colombia using Satellite Imagery
Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas, Bogotá Colombia
Dr. Javier Medina and Dr. Erika Sofia Upegui Cardona

Accepted proposals will be announced in late December 2023.

Third IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge

The Third GRSS Student Grand Challenge targeted the detection of marine plastic litter. This challenge was conducted in collaboration with the Van Allen Foundation of the Université de Montpellier (France). Four student teams were selected from France, Spain, Portugal, and the US, using a number of different techniques from GNSS-R to hyperspectral imaging, optical radiometry and lidar fluorescence. Preliminary results were presented by one of the teams at IGARSS 2023 in Pasadena, USA.

Every year, around 338 million tons of plastic are produced globally. Much of this plastic ends up in the ocean, forming massive accumulations of plastic and microplastic particles that harm both human health and aquatic wildlife.

To combat this, the CAPTAIN project integrates satellite and in-situ measurements to identify and quantify oceanic plastic debris. Led by members of the Technical University of Catalonia and scientists at the Institute of Marine Sciences, the project has developed an instrumented Lagrangian buoy. This buoy drifts with ocean currents, monitoring plastic and fluorescent dissolved organic matter (FDOM), which signals plastic decomposition.

The buoy transmits real-time data via satellite, highlighting pollution hotspots and aiding targeted satellite remote sensing. Currently undergoing long-term testing near Barcelona, the buoy aims to refine its capabilities for future widespread use.

References

• Arii, M., Koiwa, M., Aoki, Y. Applicability of SAR to Marine Debris Surveillance After the Great East Japan Earthquake. IEEE J. Sel. Top. Appl. Earth Obs. Remote Sens. 7,
  1729–1744 (2014). doi.org/10.1109/JSTARS.2014.2308550
• Biermann, L., Clewley, D., Martinez-Vicente, V., Topouzelis, K. Finding Plastic Patches in Coastal Waters using Optical Satellite Data, Nat. Scientific Reports 10, 5364 (2020). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-62298-z
• Lee, Y. K., Hong, S., Hur J., A fluorescence indicator for source discrimination between microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter and aquatic natural organic matter, Water Research, 207 (2021). doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2021.117833
• Maximenko et al. Toward the Integrated Marine Debris Observing System, Front. Mar. Sci., 6, (2019). doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2019.00447
• Romera-Castillo, C., Pinto, M., Langer, T. M., Álvarez-Salgado X. A., Herndl G. J.,
  Dissolved organic carbon leaching from plastics stimulates microbial activity in the
  ocean. Nat Commun 9, 1430 (2018). doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-03798-5
• Topouzelis, K., Papageorgiou, D., Karagaitanakis, A., Papakonstantinou, A., Arias Ballesteros, M., Remote Sensing of Sea Surface Artificial Floating Plastic Targets with Sentinel-2 and Unmanned Aerial Systems (Plastic Litter Project 2019). Remote Sens. 2020, 12, (2013).

Second IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenge

The Second GRSS Student Grand Challenge aimed at developing Earth Observation payloads for nanosatellites. This challenge was conducted in collaboration with the National Space Science and Technology Center (NSSTC), Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Three student teams were selected from Spain, Indonesia, and Japan. These payloads included an L-band microwave radiometer, a hyperspectral camera, an IoT communications system, and an RGB camera with an AI system to discard images covered by clouds. The 3-unit CubeSat and the 3 payloads developed were presented at IGARSS 2023 in Pasadena, USA. The current status of the satellite is in the final integration phase. The launch is planned for October 2024 on a Falcon-9 rocket. The mission includes payloads built by student teams from three international universities:

1. 

   Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain, is developing an L-band radiometer for monitoring ice thickness and soil moisture, a hyperspectral camera for monitoring vegetation, and a software-defined radio for monitoring Radio Frequency Interference.

2. Telkom University, Indonesia, is developing a multispectral camera and a miniature spectrometer for atmospheric sensing.

3. Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan, is developing algorithms for onboard image classification to automatically detect the best quality images for downlinking.

Image 1 – AlainSat-1 team during the integration from left to right: Prof. Abdul-Hallim Jallad, Mr. Abdullah AlSalmani, Mr. Edwar (LOCANA team), Ms. Teana Mohamed, Mr. Adrián Pérez (RITA team), Dr. Yasir Abbas (ICU team), Mr. Mukesh Jha, Mr. Guillem Gràcia (RITA team), Mr. Amadeu Gonga (RITA team), and Mr. Hassan Al -Ali.

Image 2 – AlainSat-1 during the integration of the flight model.

First IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenges

The First GRSS Student Grand Challenge focused on the development of end-to-end remote sensing applications based on drones or remotely piloted aircraft systems. Five student teams were selected. Projects included a surveillance system for forest fire detection, a precision agriculture and forest monitoring system, a rice farm mapping system, a system to detect and geolocate disaster survivors, and a system to monitor glaciers. These projects were invited to present their results at IGARSS 2019 in Yokohama, Japan, in a dedicated session:

www.igarss2019.org/Papers/PublicSessionIndex3.asp?Sessionid=1375.

.     . 

The Second GRSS Student Grand Challenge aimed at developing Earth Observation payloads for nanosatellites. This challenge was conducted in collaboration with the National Space Science and Technology Center (NSSTC), Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Three student teams were selected from Spain, Indonesia, and Japan. These payloads included an L-band microwave radiometer, a hyperspectral camera, an IoT communications system, an RGB camera with an AI system to discard images covered by clouds. The satellite launch is now scheduled for the second half of 2024. The 3-unit CubeSat and the 3 payloads developed were presented at IGARSS 2023 in Pasadena, USA:

2023.ieeeigarss.org/view_session.php?SessionID=1464 2023.ieeeigarss.org/view_session.php?SessionID=1465

The Third GRSS Student Grand Challenge targeted the detection of marine plastic litter. This challenge was conducted in collaboration with the Van Allen Foundation of the Université de Montpellier (France). Four student teams were selected from France, Spain, Portugal, and the US, using a number of different techniques from GNSS-R to hyperspectral imaging, optical radiometry and lidar fluorescence. Preliminary results were presented by one of the teams at IGARSS 2023 in Pasadena, USA:

2023.ieeeigarss.org/view_paper.php?PaperNum=2041

Questions and more information

If you have any questions about the IEEE GRSS Student Grand Challenges, please email ieee.grss.4sgc@gmail.com.

Submissions will only be accepted by email via ieee.grss.4sgc@gmail.com.