Thursday, Nov 21, 2013
Dubai: DubaiSat 2, UAE’s second earth imaging satellite was launched into the orbit successfully on Thursday, the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) has announced.
The satellite was launched into the outer space at 11:10am UAE time from the Yasny Launch Base in Russia, using the Russian Dnepr rocket launcher in cooperation with the Russian International Space Company (Kozmotras),
A team of 32 engineers worked on the design, construction and launch of the satellite, including 16 Emirati engineers who supervised the launch till the last second.
Yousuf Al Shaibani, Director General of EIAST hailed the launch as a major milestone in the UAE space technology journey and congratulated the leadership and people of Dubai on the occasion.
“We take great pride in this new accomplishment, which highlights Dubai’s great development in terms of building national UAE capacities in the space field, a feat that remains true to the vision of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, of transforming UAE into a pioneering nation,” said Al Shaibani following the successful launch of the satellite that will help in road planning and disaster management.
The satellite entered the orbit in 15 minutes and 33 seconds after its launch and separated from the launch vehicle successfully.
“The separation took place as planned and the satellite successfully settled in the orbit. We managed to have first contact with the satellite immediately after it separated from the launch vehicle. Since than we are in constant touch with the satellite, taking all the telemetry and managing the early operations smoothly,” said Amer Al Sayegh, Director of the Space Systems Development Department at EIAST.
The satellite, which is much more advanced than its predecessor, is being managed and operated by an all-Emarati staff at the ground station, based in Dubai.
“DubaiSat 2 can capture images at the range of one metre compared to 2.5 metres of DubaiSat 1, the range of application is different and at 600 kilometres from earth, the DubaiSat2 is 80 kilometres closer to earth than its predecessor,” said Al Sayegh, revealing details of the new satellite that weighs 300kg.
The speed of Dubai Sat-2 is 7.55km/S until it passes 600km above earth. It is equipped with an electrical propulsion system that allows the control of its altitude above ground level and modifies it automatically in the event of any deviation from the orbit through a set of predetermined and saved commands sent from the control station.
The new satellite is equipped with innovative technology to enhance the manoeuvring capability and increase its agility by 300 per cent, as compared to Dubai Sat-1.
“The satellite has automatically deployed the solar panels that represent the main source of electric power needed to run the satellite systems during its presence in outer space, which extends to five years from the date of launch. The satellite makes one full orbit around the earth in 96 minutes with 60 per cent of its time facing the sunlight,” added Al Sayegh.
By Shafaat Shahbandari Staff Reporter
Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.
