Batteries & energy storage

Also known as Li-ion, LiPo, LiFePO4, 18650

Cylindrical 18650 and pouch lithium-ion / LiFePO4 cells for picosatellites: specific energy, vacuum pouch swelling, 0 °C charge protection and LEO cycle life.

Document: SQ-SS-010
Updated: 21 Oct 2026
Reading time: 1 min

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Cell formats in a 50 mm envelope#

A $1 P$ PocketQube has an internal board footprint of $42 \times 42 mm$ [1]. A standard cylindrical 18650 cell ( $18 mm$ diameter by $65 mm$ length, $\approx 45 - 48 g$ , $9 - 12 Wh$ ) cannot lie flat inside a $1 P$ cube; it fits only along the vertical axis of a $1.5 P$ , $2 P$ or $3 P$ spacecraft or diagonally with a custom structural bracket[2]. Most $1 P$ designs therefore use flat lithium-polymer (LiPo) pouch cells ( $2.0 - 5.5 Wh$ ) or shorter cylindrical cells (14500, 16340, 18350)[3].

References

[1]Uludag, M. S., Yakut, E., Speretta, S., Radu, S., Chronas-Foteinakis, N., Bouwmeester, J., Menicucci, A., & Gill, E. (2019). Getting the Delfi-PQ ready for multiple launch options. In: International Symposium on Space Technology and Science (ISTS), Fukui (2019-f-08).pure.tudelft.nl
[2]nadir lab. (2026). PocketQube picosatellites: A review of standards, mission trends and miniaturization constraints, with lessons learned from Grizu-263A, Türkiye’s first PocketQube [Preprint]. nadir lab.Read on nadir lab.
[3]NASA Small Spacecraft Systems Virtual Institute. (2026). Power. State-of-the-Art of Small Spacecraft Technology (2026 edition), Chapter 3. NASA Ames Research Center.nasa.gov(accessed 20 October 2026)
[4]nadir lab. (2026). Materials engineering for PocketQube picosatellites: A scaling-based review and design guide [Preprint]. nadir lab.Read on nadir lab.

Cite this SatWiki entry

@misc{nadirlab2026batteries,
  author       = {{nadir lab.}},
  title        = {{Batteries \& energy storage}},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = oct,
  howpublished = {nadir lab. SatWiki SQ-SS-010 (Rev. 1)},
  url          = {https://nadirlab.space/en/wiki/batteries/}
}

nadir lab. (2026). Batteries & energy storage. nadir lab. SatWiki (SQ-SS-010, Rev. 1). https://nadirlab.space/en/wiki/batteries/

TY  - ENCYC
AU  - {nadir lab.}
TI  - Batteries & energy storage
T2  - nadir lab. SatWiki
PY  - 2026
ET  - Rev. 1
C1  - SQ-SS-010
UR  - https://nadirlab.space/en/wiki/batteries/
ER  -