QUBE (Quantum Key Distribution with CubeSat) is one out of three pilot projects in the frame of the national
German initiative QUTEGA to promote quantum technologies. The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry
of Education and Research (BMBF) with co-funding of industry as preparation for the European flagship on Quantum
Technology. With the current development pace in quantum computation, it has been predicted that in less than two
decades quantum computers will be able to break encryption codes deployed today, which are currently based on
mathematical problems difficult to solve with classical computation. This shows the urgent need for quantum-safe
encryption that is resistant to attacks of both, quantum and classical, computers. A long term solution for quantumsafe encryption is the use of a completely random, so-called One-Time-Pad generated with true Random Number
Generation (RNG) and distributed via Quantum Key Distribution (QKD). The QKD in fiber networks is limited to
approx. 100 km due to damping within the carrier medium. For longer distances so far only satellite based techniques
are able to transmit the keys. As a pathfinder, QUBE plans perform an in-orbit demonstration of the core technologies
on a CubeSat platform
