CHIPS demonstrated that a small, three-axis stabilized spacecraft and science instrument could be built and operated for a fraction of the cost of traditional missions. The Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPS) was a University-Class Explorer (UNEX) mission. The CHIPS program demonstrated that a small (65 kg), three-axis stabilized spacecraft and science instrument could be built and operated for a fraction of the cost of traditional missions.