Amid growing demand for telecommunications and surveillance satellites in Southeast Asia, Vietnam said it plans to design and launch its first satellites of its own.
According to Nguyen Duc Cuong, chairman of the Vietnam Aerospace Association, Vietnam has a growing need for 2 kinds of satellites: Geostationary telecommunications satellites and distant sensing satellites for weather forecasting and environmental monitoring.
Experts consider Vietnam could master the technology vital to construct such satellites, somewhat than purchasing them from foreign suppliers for a few years.
The Vietnam National Satellite Center, a research center based in Hanoi under the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, has already taken step one and developed the primary prototype of a Vietnam-built satellite, named Pico Dragon.
It is a tiny satellite weighing just one kilogram, launched into orbit as a part of a cooperation program with Japan. The satellite could fly for a while and transmit signals to Earth.
The next step will likely be to construct barely larger satellites, weighing from ten to 50 kilograms, with longer orbital lifetimes and more functions. One of them is Micro Dragon, designed to look at coastal waters to find out water quality, locate fish stocks and monitor changes in coastal waters for the fishing industry.
One of them is Micro Dragon, designed to look at coastal waters to find out water quality, locate fish stocks and monitor changes in coastal waters for the fishing industry.
The ultimate goal, nonetheless, is to construct more sophisticated and advanced satellites.
In cooperation with Japan, the Vietnam National Satellite Center is working to develop two kinds of radar-equipped satellites weighing 600 kilograms each, named LOTUSat-1 and LOTUSat-2.
Vietnam is scheduled to launch two radar satellites in 2019 and 2022, respectively, from industrial launch pads in Russia, the US, French Guiana, India or China to assist predict and prepare for extreme weather and climate conditions.
They are the primary to make use of high-resolution technology to capture images in various weather conditions and represent the country’s most ambitious science and technology project ever developed by Vietnam’s National Satellite Center, with an investment of $600 million.
Source : invest
