## 1 Introduction  
The last two decades have seen an enormous rise in the number of launched small satellite missions [1, 2, 3]. The growth of launch opportunities, the technological advances, and the creation of standards such as the CubeSats for subsystems and devices has allowed passing from exclusively academic-based projects to missions that involve research centers, private companies, and public institutions [4]. Small satellites have been shown to share many characteristics of disruptive innovations and can be employed in a range of different missions, such as scientific and educational missions, remote sensing, and communications [5, 6, 7]. In this context, the need for capacity building and allocation of human resources toward better management and technological innovation for the space field is critical in countries where space activities are not sufficiently established yet, and the CubeSat represents a great platform for education and research [8, 9]. Moreover, CubeSats have reduced entry-level costs for space missions, and due to the fact that innovative miniaturizedhardware is being developed for deep-space missions, opportunities for lunar orbit and interplanetary space are already becoming available [10; 11; 12]. Consequently, educational training is a very important and strategic step in order to further increase the expertise of the scientific community, for instance in Brazil, with the goal of mastering the operation and development of critical and restricted-access technologies in satellite missions. Elaborated missions are able to address different needs of our society, which imposes strict requirements on the execution of the mission phases. For instance, the need for improving the terrestrial communication coverage providing massive connectivity to under-served areas is driving communication satellites development to a new era of data-based services and applications [13; 14]. If one considers the development and operation of reliable data and voice communication systems in remote areas, or those with difficult access, it still represents a challenge in the modern world that affects not only civil society but also a country's defense. In the civil area, it can be said that a few decades ago there were no online applications to improve agriculture and its accuracy, for direct communication between devices, or even interaction and data exchange in order to elevate data connectivity to a more comprehensive level. In the defense field, remote regions with poor infrastructure lack vital communication capabilities beyond line-of-sight to serve tactical land users. When operating over long distances, over rough terrain, or in a jungle environment, tactical users cannot maintain radio line-of-sight. This creates gaps in situational awareness, increasing the possibility that criminal threats or activities go unnoticed, not monitored, not reported, and reactions by local authorities are not triggered. The AlfaCrux mission is the first space mission financed by the Federal District Government, via the Federal District Research Support Foundation, with institutional support from the Brazilian Space Agency, and under the coordination of the University of Brasilia, the owner and operator of AlfaCrux. It is an amateur radio and educational mission with in-orbit technological demonstration and high-level tasks such as management, planning, and risk analysis along the typical life cycle of a space mission. It aims to provide its participants with an excellent technical and intercultural experience and to become a network of students, professors, researchers, radio amateurs, and other partners for the technological advancement of space. The AlfaCrux system is a satellite communication solution with practical and research implications for general society, allowing the responsible team to obtain knowledge about aerospace technology, with innovative experiences and skills, when working on the development of a satellite from the initial phase to its operation.