Overview

The Raspberry Pi Sense HAT is an official multi-sensor expansion board manufactured by the Raspberry Pi Foundation. Developed originally for the Astro Pi mission onto the International Space Station (ISS), it turns any 40-pin Raspberry Pi into an integrated environmental and space science laboratory.

Fitting onto the 40-pin GPIO header, the Sense HAT integrates:

  • An 8×88 \times 8 RGB LED matrix driven by an ATtiny88 microcontroller and LED2472G constant-current drivers.
  • A 5-button miniature directional joystick (Up, Down, Left, Right, Center Click).
  • An LSM9DS1 9-DOF IMU (3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, 3-axis magnetometer).
  • An LPS25H barometric pressure & temperature sensor.
  • An HTS221 relative humidity & temperature sensor.

Quick reference

Operating voltage (VCC)5.0 V DC (powered directly from Pi 40-pin header 5V rail)
Form factorStandard Raspberry Pi HAT footprint (65×56 mm65 \times 56\text{ mm})
Display8×88 \times 8 RGB LED Matrix (15-bit color depth / 32,768 colors)
Input control5-way directional joystick (Up, Down, Left, Right, Enter)
Motion sensing9-DOF IMU (LSM9DS1: ±16g\pm 16g accel, ±2000 dps\pm 2000\text{ dps} gyro, ±16 gauss\pm 16\text{ gauss} mag)
Environmental sensingPressure 260…1260 hPa260\dots 1260\text{ hPa} (LPS25H) & Humidity 0…100%0\dots 100\% RH (HTS221)
InterfaceI2CI^2C bus 1 (/dev/i2c-1)

Onboard ICs & I2CI^2C Addresses

FunctionIntegrated CircuitI2CI^2C AddressDescription
9-DOF IMU (Accel & Gyro)STMicroelectronics LSM9DS10x6A3-axis accelerometer + 3-axis gyroscope
9-DOF IMU (Magnetometer)STMicroelectronics LSM9DS10x1C3-axis digital magnetometer
Barometer & TempSTMicroelectronics LPS25H0x5C260–1260 hPa260\text{--}1260\text{ hPa} pressure sensor
Humidity & TempSTMicroelectronics HTS2210x5F0–100%0\text{--}100\% relative humidity sensor
LED Matrix & JoystickAtmel ATtiny88 MCU0x46Co-processor managing 64 RGB LEDs and joystick

Specifications

ParameterSymbolMinTypMaxUnitConditions
Supply VoltageV5VV_{5V}4.85.05.25VPower from Pi 5V rail
Operating CurrentICCI_{CC}—450600mALEDs active at 100% brightness
Barometer AccuracyPaccP_{acc}-1.0±0.2\pm 0.2+1.0hPaRelative pressure accuracy
Humidity AccuracyHaccH_{acc}-3.5±1.5\pm 1.5+3.5% RHAcross 20% to 80% RH20\%\text{ to }80\%\text{ RH}
Temperature AccuracyTaccT_{acc}-0.5±0.2\pm 0.2+0.5°CAcross 15∘C to 40∘C15^\circ\text{C}\text{ to }40^\circ\text{C}
Joystick Pins——5——Mapped to ATtiny88 register

Python Software Installation & Setup

Enable I2CI^2C and install the official Raspberry Pi sense-hat Python library:

bash
sudo raspi-config # Enable I2C under Interface Options
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install sense-hat

Python Code Example

python
from sense_hat import SenseHat
import time

sense = SenseHat()

# Clear LED matrix
sense.clear()

# Display scrolling text message
sense.show_message("Astro Pi Online!", scroll_speed=0.05, text_colour=[0, 255, 0])

# Read environmental sensors
temp = sense.get_temperature()
humidity = sense.get_humidity()
pressure = sense.get_pressure()

print(f"Temperature: {temp:.2f} °C")
print(f"Humidity:    {humidity:.2f} % RH")
print(f"Pressure:    {pressure:.2f} hPa")

# Read 9-DOF IMU Orientation (Yaw, Pitch, Roll)
orientation = sense.get_orientation_degrees()
print(f"Pitch: {orientation['pitch']:.1f}° | Roll: {orientation['roll']:.1f}° | Yaw: {orientation['yaw']:.1f}°")

# Display a red pixel at center (x=3, y=3)
sense.set_pixel(3, 3, 255, 0, 0)
time.sleep(2)
sense.clear()

Common mistakes

  • CPU self-heating offset on temperature: Because the Sense HAT sits directly above the warm Raspberry Pi CPU SoC, heat radiating from the Pi CPU warms the board PCB, causing temperature readings to read +3∘C+3^\circ\text{C} to +5∘C+5^\circ\text{C} higher than ambient room temperature. Use a GPIO ribbon cable or standoff tower to isolate the HAT, or apply CPU temperature offset compensation in software.
  • Forgetting I2CI^2C kernel module enablement: If sense.get_temperature() throws an I2CI^2C device error, run sudo raspi-config and ensure I2CI^2C is enabled in the Raspberry Pi OS kernel.

Notes

  • Sense HAT vs Sense HAT V2: The original Sense HAT uses LSM9DS1 + LPS25H; updated revisions use LSM6DSOX + LIS3MDL + LPS22HB.

Assets & downloads