NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X

Nigeria yesterday, successfully, launched one of the most advanced earth observation satellites (Nigeriasat-2) of its kind that is commercially available in the imaging world into the orbit at exactly 8:12.am Nigerian time in Russia.

Nigeria Sat-X, which was built by Nigerian engineers trained at the same time the Sat-2 was being built as a demonstration that Nigeria can build and launch its satellite was launched alongside NigeriaSat-2.

With the launch of the two satellites, NigeriaSa-1, which has since overstayed its life span in orbit would be replaced.

Speaking to journalists in Abuja shortly after showing the live coverage of the launch site, in Russia to the audience, the project manager of the NigeriaSat-2 and X, Mr. Francis Chizea, said that NigeriaSat-2 and X, have five years life span, just like NigeriaSat-1, and “will continue the work which NigeriaSat-1 is doing, but is more advanced in technology.”

Explaining further, Mr. Chizea, noted that the satellite was designed for five years, just like NigeriaSat-1. “It is still in the orbit functioning and providing images as it used to be. They are two different satellites on their own; Nigeria Sat-2 is a higher resolution satellite, carrying 2.5m resolution camera on board.

“It also has 32m camera on board, because we expect that very soon, Nigeria Sat-1 will expire, and stop working. So to ensure that there is data continuity, we also have that 32m camera in Nigeria sat-2. It is a more advanced space craft. Whatever Nigeria sat-2 is doing in the orbit now is to carry out earth resolution that Nigeriasat-1 has been carrying out for the past 8 years, but with 32m camera, it has better grand meter set, which we never had before. Now, we can have our own high earth resolution data from our grand station whenever we want it.”

On the economic implication of the satellite, he said, it is not just launching of the satellite that matters but to improve the socio-economic life of Nigerians, adding that data from Nigeria-sat-2 will be used for various applications “in agriculture, urban mapping, environmental monitoring, etc. nigeriasat-2 is one of the most advanced satellites of its kind that is in the orbit today.”

Explaining why the satellite is the most advanced of its kind, Chizea pointed out that the Nigeriasat-2 unlike any other satellite can image lots of images, “for example, it can image a still image, under a very low skill which was not possible in Nigeriasat-1. Nigeriasat-2 is very agile, you can image and offload at the same time to the grand station, this is the facility that is not available in satellites of its kind. It can carry out images from security, pipeline monitoring to coastal monitoring, depending on what we have on ground.”

On the Nigeria Sat-X, he said, the space agency is in control of it is, as it is in its early stage operations. He said that SSTL Satellite company in Russia, trained the engineers and as well built Sat-2.

Also speaking, the acting director-general of National Space Research and Development Agency, who is also director of policy, planning and research, Mrs. Augusta Iheanacho, said the agency is particularly delighted because, “it is our engineers that built Nigeria-Sat-X, using Surrey’s facilities far away in the UK.”

She, however, appealed to the federal government, that since Nigerian engineers were able to build and launch Nigeria Sat-X, they should be given all the necessary support to launch same achievement in Nigeria.

“If only we had the critical infrastructure we need to be able to build our own satellite in Nigeria. Like I said, the critical infrastructure will required is the assembling, integration and testing and designing centres, we promise Nigeria, that henceforth, we will be able to build our own satellite in Nigeria, without outside assistance,” she added.

THE TWO ORBIT
Nigeria launched two observation satellites into orbit yesterday, and authorities said they hoped to use the equipment to monitor weather in a region seasonally ravaged by disasters.

Nigeria launched NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X into orbit yesterday morning from a Russian launch pad in the town of Yasny, President Goodluck Jonathan said on state-run television.

He described the event as "another milestone in our nation's effort to solve national problems through space technology."

The satellites could have a variety of applications, authorities said, which include monitoring disaster-prone areas in a country that stretches into Africa's Sahel, a belt of land on the Sahara Desert's southern fringe that sees extreme weather conditions. It experiences severe droughts in the dry season and devastating rainfall in the wet season. Floods last year displaced about 500,000 people nationwide, with most of them in the Sahel region.

Authorities said NigeriaSat-2 can detect anything wider than 8.2 feet (2.5 meters), such as cars. That means the satellites also could be used for military and intelligence purposes.

The satellite launch also spotlights Nigeria as a main African player in space technology development, rivaling countries such as South Africa and Algeria, which also have space programs. Despite the strides Nigeria's space technology industry has made in recent years, it remains largely dependent on other nations' technology.

NigeriaSat-X was built by a team of Nigerian engineers and scientists at Surrey Satellite Technology in the United Kingdom, while NigeriaSat-2 was built in collaboration with the UK company's team, said Felix Ale, a spokesman for the National Space Research and Development Agency.

Nigerian officials hope this launch goes better than the country's last. In May 2007, Nigeria launched its first communication satellite, built by a Chinese team and launched from a Chinese pad. NIGCOMSAT-1 was expected to provide phone, broadband Internet and broadcasting services in Africa's most populous country, but it was lost in space just over a year later. Authorities said a replacement satellite will be launched before the end of the year.


THE SATELLITE IS A BLESSING TO AFRICA
Gajere Nduke, director of the National Centre for Remote Sensing (NCRS), says the successful launch of NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X is a blessing to Africa. Nduke, in an interview with newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday, said Nigeria would reap the benefit of investing in the satellites.

`Being the first satellite in Africa with this kind of high resolution, I am sure the West African Sub-region and Africa will be able to use it for development,’’ Nduke said. He added that the satellites would help the country to adequately plan its various sectors and be used to outsource its natural resources. The director promised that the centre would make good use of the satellites for the development of the country.

``Because of the high resolution of the satellites, NCRS is going to use it to map Nigeria into 1:25,000 scale,’’ Nduke added. Meanwhile, the Director-General, National Space Research and Development Agency, Dr Seidu Mohammed, has said that the successful launch of the two satellites had consolidated the country’s position as a budding space nation.

Mohammed, in a statement signed by Felix Ale, NASRDA’s Head of Media and Cooperate Affairs, said that defending the country’s sovereignty was not only a political issue, but also scientific. He added that the efforts of young Nigerian engineers and scientists in building NigeriaSat-X had brought a lot of prestige to the country. (NAN)

NIGERIA'S GROUND STATION CAN'T RECIEVE SIGNALS FROM LAUNCHED SATELLITE.
Nigeria launched satellite - Two days after Nigeria launched two satellites into space for security and environment monitoring purposes, indications are that the ground station in the capital city of Abuja lacks the facilities to receive images from one of the satellites.

Two Nigerian-built satellites, NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X, were launched Wednesday in Russia, where they were built by Nigerian engineers

But the private Guardian newspaper reported Friday that the ground station in Abuja was equipped only to receive images from NigeriaSat-2 for which it was built, not for NigeriaSat-X.

The implication is that Nigeria will have to rely on the UK-based Surrey Space Technology Ltd for information from NigeriaSat-X.

The paper however quoted Nigeria's National Space Research and Development Council (NARSDA) as saying the ground station can handle information from NigeriaSat-X.

NARSDA spokesman Felix Alle was quoted as saying: “Our facilities can receive images and monitor the operations of NigeriaSat-X. The engineers are currently doing telemetry, a process that involves sharing software with the satellites. The satellites are currently receiving all the software that we are sending to them.”

In 2006, British satellite firm Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) signed a contract with NARSDA for the supply of the NigeriaSat-2 Earth observation satellite, related ground infrastructure and a training programme to further develop an indigenous space capability in Nigeria.