CanSat
CHALLENGE

Bihar · Jharkhand · Season I 2026–27

Build a satellite. Drop it from 120 m. Make it talk on the way down.

The first school-level CanSat competition for Bihar and Jharkhand. Teams of Class 8 to 12 students design and build a working satellite the size of a soft-drink can. A G-Vayu drone releases it mid-air; it has to open its parachute, stream live data to a ground station the team built, and land in one piece.

Register your school Sponsor a government school team
Registration closes
25 Oct 2026registration open
Grand Finale
11 Jan 2027Patna · reserve day 12 Jan
Open to
Class 8 to 12Junior and Senior, judged apart
Entry per team
From ₹2,000Pay online after registering
120 m 80 m 60 m 0 m
Senior release 120 m, from a G-Vayu drone
Junior release 60–80 m
Parachute open 5–8 m/s, 1 packet a second
Landed Buzzer on, team finds it
Ground station ● RX 1 Hz
ALT84.2 m
PRES1003.1 hPa
TEMP29.4 °C
BATT3.91 V
ACC9.6 m/s²
STATEDESCENT

Sample packet. Teams build this ground station themselves: it plots live and saves every packet.

Mission profile. Radio on LoRa 865–867 MHz or 2.4 GHz, 100 mW max. Every CanSat also keeps an onboard backup log.
Portrait of Dr. Hashima Hasan
Photo: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
Mentor, Season I

Dr. Hashima Hasan

Deputy Program Scientist, James Webb Space Telescope, NASA

Program Scientist for NuSTAR, IXPE and the Keck Observatory. D.Phil. in Theoretical Nuclear Physics, University of Oxford.

Mentoring school teams from Class 8 to 12 as they design, build and fly their own CanSats.

In partnership with
Patliputra Samvad Quad AI
Mentor · Guest of Honour, Grand Finale
Prof. Vinay Kumar Prof. Vinay KumarProfessor and Head, Physics and Astronomical Sciences, Central University of Jammu. Former Convener, Satish Dhawan Centre for Space Science.
Organised by
AirLeap, a G-Vayu Robotics initiative
ISO 9001:2015. G-Vayu builds its own UAVs, ESCs and robotic systems.
Title sponsor
Open for Season I · Talk to us
01The mission

What every CanSat has to do

A satellite the size of a soft-drink can, 300 to 500 grams, built from parts the team picks and pays for with sponsor money. No pre-made kits. At the offline rounds a G-Vayu drone carries it up and lets go.

  1. Know where it is in the flightDetect and report its state: on the pad, released, descending, landed.
  2. Come down safelyOpen a parachute and descend at 5 to 8 metres a second.
  3. Talk on the way downSend live telemetry once a second: altitude, pressure, temperature, battery voltage, acceleration and flight state.
  4. Remember everythingKeep an onboard backup log in case the radio drops packets.
  5. Be foundSound a buzzer after landing so the team can recover it.
  6. Report to a station the team builtThe ground station plots data live and saves every packet it receives.
02Categories, spec and fees

Two categories, judged separately

Want the full rulebook and technical brief? Ask us for a copy.

Per teamJuniorClass 8 to 10SeniorClass 11 to 12
Release height60–80 m120 m
Max packed size75 mm dia × 145 mm66 mm dia × 115 mm
Mass300–500 g300–350 g
Secondary missionOptional, earns bonus pointsOne required: air-quality profile, two-stage descent, onboard video, GPS landing prediction, or light and UV profile
Hardware budget cap₹15,000₹25,000
Entry fee₹3,500₹5,000
Government school₹2,000₹2,500
All-girls team₹2,000₹2,000
Independent team₹5,000₹5,000

Concessions don't stack: a school team pays the single lowest rate it qualifies for. Independent teams, entering outside a school, pay a flat ₹5,000. Fees are paid online after you register.

Both: descent
5–8 m/s under parachute
Both: radio
LoRa 865–867 MHz or 2.4 GHz, 100 mW max
Both: power
One protected Li-ion cell or AA cells, 60 minutes runtime
Not allowed
Pyrotechnics, compressed gas, unprotected LiPo cells, pre-made kits
03The season

Two online reviews and a video test narrow the field. Two drone rounds decide it.

Junior and Senior run as separate tracks through every stage, across 62 districts and 14 divisions.

  1. 25 OctRegistration closesOpen now

    School details and the category of each team, then the entry fee online.

  2. By 5 NovPreliminary Design ReviewOnline · rolling

    Due 14 days after you register. Written feedback within 4 days. Only hard rule breaks are cut.

  3. 18 NovCritical Design ReviewOnline

    Design document and a 5-minute video of live telemetry. Results 21 Nov: top 2 per district go on.

  4. 5–8 DecDistrict Deploy TestOnline · video

    A standard test filmed at school: flight states, radio range and a supervised parachute drop. No drones. One champion per district.

  5. 19–21 DecDivision Readiness TestOffline

    The first full-height drone release, plus inspection. One champion per division.

  6. 11 Jan 2027Grand Finale, PatnaOffline

    28 finalists, 14 per category, in one day. Reserve day 12 Jan.

248teams at most after the CDR
124district champions
28finalists
06Where it leads

The finale is a starting line

  1. Top 10Teams trained for national and international satellite-building competitions
  2. Top 30Ongoing mentorship in space technology
  3. Top 50A drone-making workshop
  4. AllWritten feedback on every PDR and mentor office hours until the CDR. Teams that clear the CDR get an assigned mentor.
07Safety

No rockets. No explosives.

  • Every drone release is flown by a certified pilot, on insured G-Vayu drones, inside a 1,500 m exclusion zone.
  • Students never fly drones or climb onto roofs for the video test.
  • No pyrotechnics, compressed gas or unprotected LiPo cells on any CanSat.
Good to know

Before you register

  • AirLeap does not provide accommodation or transport for offline rounds.
  • Diwali, Bhai Dooj and Chhath fall between the PDR and the CDR. Plan the build around them.
  • Questions: office@air-leap.com or WhatsApp +91 96229 22603
08Questions

Frequently asked

Who can take part?
Any school in Bihar or Jharkhand. Junior is Class 8 to 10, Senior is Class 11 to 12. Each team has 5 or 6 students, at least 35% of them girls, and one teacher mentor.
How many teams can one school enter?
We recommend no more than 5 teams from one school. You choose Junior or Senior for each team when you register.
How do we pay the entry fee?
Register your school, then pay on the next page by UPI, card or net banking through Cashfree. If you'd rather pay by bank transfer or need an invoice first, skip that step and our payment team will call you.
Can we use a ready-made CanSat kit?
No. Pre-made kits are not allowed, including AirLeap's own CanSat kit. Teams choose and buy their own parts within the hardware cap.
Who pays for the components?
The school can fund up to 30% of the component budget. The rest, 70% or more, comes from local business sponsors the team finds. Students and families pay nothing.
We're a government school with no budget. Can we still take part?
Yes. Register and tick "We are a government school and need a sponsor". We match government school teams with sponsors from their district for the entry fee and components.
Where are the offline rounds?
The Division Readiness Test runs 19 to 21 December at two central venues. The Grand Finale is on 11 January 2027 in Patna, with 12 January as a reserve day. AirLeap does not provide accommodation or transport.
Is it safe?
There are no rockets or explosives. Every drone release is flown by a certified pilot on insured G-Vayu drones inside a 1,500 m exclusion zone, and students never fly drones themselves.

Last date 25 October 2026

One form per school, about two minutes. Pay the entry fee online on the next page.

Register your school Sponsor a government school team