Channels

Photo: AFP
India launches rocket
Photo: AFP

India launches 104 nanosatellites into space, two of them Israeli

BGUSAT, developed by Ben Gurion University in collaboration with the Israel Aerospace Industries and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Space to study climate change and scientific phenomena from space.

India's space agency successfully launched more than 100 foreign nano satellites into orbit Wednesday aboard a single rocket, two of them Israeli.

 

 

The Indian Space Research Organization said the nano satellites—those weighing less than 10 kilograms (22 pounds)—were sent into orbit from the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle from the Satish Dhawan launching pad in southern India. It said the launching of the 104 satellites was a record, overtaking Russia's feat of sending 37 satellites in a single launch in 2014.

 

"All 104 satellites were successfully placed in orbit," the Press Trust of India news agency quoted ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar as saying. They included an Indian Earth observation satellite and two small technology demonstration satellites.

 

The rocket launch in India

The rocket launch in India

סגורסגור

שליחה לחבר

 הקלידו את הקוד המוצג
תמונה חדשה

שלח
הסרטון נשלח לחברך

סגורסגור

הטמעת הסרטון באתר שלך

 קוד להטמעה:

 

The ISRO said in a statement that the other satellites were international customer satellites, including 96 from the United States, two from Israel, and one each from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates.

 

One of the Israeli satellites will study climate change and scientific phenomena from space. The BGUSAT, which is a little bit larger than a milk carton, was developed by Ben Gurion University (BGU) in collaboration with the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Space. Weighing just five kilograms, the BGUSAT is outfitted with innovative new cameras that can detect climate phenomena and a guidance system that lets the operators choose the areas to shoot and research through a dedicated ground station at BGU.

 

India launches the rocket carrying the nanosatellites into space (Photo: AFP)
India launches the rocket carrying the nanosatellites into space (Photo: AFP)

  

It is the first time that any Israeli university will have access to data from an Israeli nanosatellite for research purposes.

 

“This is the first time that Israeli researchers will have the opportunity to receive information directly from a completely blue and white satellite, without having to go through other countries or research agencies,” said Avi Belsberger, director of the Israel Space Agency.

 

The Israel Space Agency in the Science Ministry, IAI and BGU launched the nanosatellite project five years ago while actual construction of the satellite began two years ago at IAI’s space division. “This is another step in advancing cooperation between the government, industry and academia in order to promote the Israeli space industry,” said Science Minister Ofir Akunis.

 

“Only such a collaboration with government backing will preserve the Israeli space industry’s global standing, and will promote research, create new jobs, all while safeguarding the essential interests of Israel,” Akunis further commented in a statement.

 

The BGUSAT (Photo: IAI)
The BGUSAT (Photo: IAI)

 

Following the satellite’s launch, the Israel Space Agency has allocated an additional NIS 1 million to fund future research based on the data to be received from the satellite and sent out a call for proposals. BGU and TAU have already submitted a joint proposal to study Earth’s airglow layer.

 

“Nanosatellites enable space engineering and space research at costs that are affordable for academia. The reduced costs allow academia to assume a much more active role in the field taking advantage of the innovation and initiative of researchers and students,” said Prof. Dan Blumberg, BGU’s VP and Dean for R&D.

 

Through the BGUSAT cameras, researchers will be able to track atmospheric gases like CO2 in order to understand climate change, to examine changes in ground moisture that could be an indicator of desertification and affect agricultural development or to monitor plant development in different regions.

 

The other Israeli nanosatellite belongs to the company SpacePharma.

 

The India rocket launching nanosatellites into space (Photo: EPA)
The India rocket launching nanosatellites into space (Photo: EPA)

 

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the "remarkable feat by ISRO is yet another proud moment for our space scientific community and the nation."

 

India has been striving to become a player in the multibillion-dollar space launch market, and has successfully placed light satellites into orbit in recent years. It hopes to eventually send astronauts into space.

 

In September 2014, India successfully guided a spacecraft into orbit around Mars. Only the United States, the former Soviet Union and the European Space Agency had been able to previously do that.

 

Yaron Druckman and TPS contributed to this report.

 


פרסום ראשון: 02.15.17, 17:27
 new comment
Warning:
This will delete your current comment