ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopia is undertaking the necessary preparations to launch its third Earth observation satellite, which has a five-year lifespan, the Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI) announced.
SSGI Director General AbdissaYilma told The Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) that the satellite is under development as per an agreement signed with the prominent Chinese company Shanghai Engineering Microsatellite. According to Abdissa, the satellite development process consists of several stages, including mission analysis, preliminary design work, in-depth design analysis, and the assembly of components.
“Following the assembly work, testing on the satellite will be conducted to enhance temperature control,” the Director General added.
Accordingly, he stated that Shanghai Engineering Microsatellite has finalized the mission analysis process.
The assembly and testing of the satellite will take three months, during which Ethiopian engineers are expected to be involved in each phase, Abdissa noted.
He added that launching the satellite requires a total of 18 months from the date of the initial agreement, though the actual launch date may vary. The third satellite is intended to provide high-resolution images, complementing the data from the two satellites already in orbit.
This will help interpret data that is crucial for various development activities, including agriculture, forestry, water resource management, and natural disaster prevention, according to the Director General.
Ethiopia is also finalizing a feasibility study and exploring financial alternatives to develop and launch a communication satellite, he indicated.
It should be recalled that Ethiopia has launched its first and second satellites in 2020 and 2021, respectively. The plan to launch the third Earth observation satellite follows the expiration of the operational lifespans of these satellites.
BY MESERET BEHAILU
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD TUESDAY 11 MARCH
