  The second Miniature X-ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS-2) CubeSat, which
begins its flight in late 2018, builds on the success of MinXSS-1, which flew
from 2016-05-16 to 2017-05-06. The science instrument is more advanced -- now
capable of greater dynamic range with higher energy resolution. More data will
be captured on the ground than was possible with MinXSS-1 thanks to a
sun-synchronous, polar orbit and technical improvements to both the spacecraft
and the ground network. Additionally, a new open-source beacon decoder for
amateur radio operators is available that can automatically forward any
captured MinXSS data to the operations and science team. While MinXSS-1 was
only able to downlink about 1 MB of data per day corresponding to a data
capture rate of about 1%, MinXSS-2 will increase that by at least a factor of
6. This increase of data capture rate in combination with the mission's longer
orbital lifetime will be used to address new science questions focused on how
coronal soft X-rays vary over solar cycle timescales and what impact those
variations have on the earth's upper atmosphere.

Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics;Solar and Stellar Astrophysics;Space Physics