Raspberry Pi CM5 · View all FAQs
It is a shared orbital software rideshare aboard a Blackwing Sparrow nanosatellite. Multiple independent software payloads run on Blackwing's Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 (CM5) payload, with Parsimoni SpaceOS as the primary deployment and application-management environment. Blackwing provides the spacecraft, launch integration, licensing, ground systems, and mission operations.
The mission is intended for startups, commercial technology companies, research organizations, and university teams seeking flight heritage or on-orbit validation for software, AI, autonomy, edge computing, data processing, cybersecurity, middleware, fault detection, or software-defined sensor applications.
The target is no earlier than Q3 2027 on a commercial rideshare mission. Commissioning and software operations are planned for Q3–Q4 2027. The schedule is subject to launch-provider readiness, satellite integration, regulatory requirements, and mission readiness.
The standard hosted-software slot is $20,000:
The milestone timing is subject to the definitive payload agreement and mission schedule.
Yes. The $5,000 reservation remains refundable until both technical acceptance and execution of the definitive payload agreement. Once accepted, it is applied to the mission price. If software cannot be made flight-ready for this mission, applying the reservation to a future mission may be considered under the mission terms.
To reserve a spot, complete the mission agreement and submit your initial deposit through our mission reservation page. Once both are received, your payload slot will be confirmed and the Blackwing Space team will begin the technical onboarding and integration process.
The flight baseline is a Raspberry Pi CM5: a 2.4 GHz quad-core Arm Cortex-A76 system with configurations up to 16 GB LPDDR4X RAM and 64 GB eMMC. It is a scheduled, duty-cycled compute resource operating within spacecraft power, thermal, communications, and operational limits. Wireless is disabled on orbit.
The default is Raspberry Pi OS on ARM64. Python runs natively; C, C++, and Rust are suitable for performance work. Final software choices require mission approval.
SpaceOS is the primary mission environment. The simplest integration path is an OCI/Docker-like image containing the application and its dependencies, run in a virtualized Linux environment. A unikernel option remains available but is not required for every workload. Alternative deployment paths, including direct Raspberry Pi OS or Docker, may be considered when technically necessary and approved during qualification.
SpaceOS supports deploying, updating, and managing software in orbit. However, the baseline schedule includes a flight-software freeze and flight-acceptance review before launch. Post-launch updates, while possible, are not planned for this initial mission.
There is no universal allocation yet. Each payload's CPU, RAM, storage, runtime, execution frequency, and communications allocation is established during technical qualification. The public CM5 hardware supports up to 16 GB RAM and 64 GB eMMC, but those are module limits, not guaranteed per-customer allocations.
The baseline is scheduled, duty-cycled operation. Specific activation windows and duration will be determined during payload integration and confirmed in the payload agreement.
No hardware-level throttling is currently planned. Power, thermal, and operational constraints still apply, and final limits are confirmed during integration review.
Yes. Customers should develop and test on a commercially available Raspberry Pi CM5 so the ground setup mirrors the flight compute. Blackwing Space provides the hardware specifications, while Parsimoni provides the SpaceOS environment and API tools.
Approved read-only data may include:
The final fields, update rates, permissions, and interfaces are established during qualification. Access to sensitive controls or bus commanding is not implied.
Both models are supported in concept: a workload may request approved data on demand, or the platform may push selected packets at agreed intervals—for example, GNSS vectors every five or ten seconds while the workload is running (subject to change).
Yes, the operating concept includes limited uplink of configuration data or command arguments and downlink of payload-generated data during ground passes. Multiple uplink/downlink opportunities are expected during an execution window. Daily bandwidth and total data allocation remain TBD and are confirmed during qualification; results are not necessarily withheld until mission closeout.
An Earth-imaging system is planned but remains to be confirmed. Two low-resolution cameras connected to the CM5 are planned for the mission. Access to imagery from these cameras is still being determined and will be confirmed in the payload agreement. The cameras are intended primarily for platform monitoring and demonstration purposes, not high-resolution Earth imaging.
Blackwing and Parsimoni review the workload architecture, software dependencies, CPU/RAM/storage needs, runtime and scheduling, data inputs and outputs, telemetry permissions, communications needs, security, failure behavior, and mission objectives. Final allocations and interfaces are documented during qualification and integration.