Events

Virgin Galactic, the private spaceflight and satellite launch company owned by Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments PJS, has just released its first television commercial. The commercial features both Virgin Galactic’s spaceflight service for wealthy individuals seeking a flight into suborbital space; and also for its …

Running a news website is costly, and in order to generate some revenue to cover the costs of producing SpaceWatch Middle East we are placing all of our analytical features (published every Sunday) behind a paywall effective immediately. All of our news items – posted daily except for Saturdays – remain free …

The United Arab Emirates Space Agency convened the first two-day conference of the Emirates Space Innovation Group (ESIG) on 3-4 May 2016, with the group creating a science and technology roadmap. The ESIG has been established to develop the science, technology and innovation capabilities in the UAE space sector and …

Recent developments in international space exploration plans for Mars have inadvertently placed the UAE’s Hope Mars Mission in the forefront, and impact the future of UAE’s space exploration ambitions. ThorGroup’s Chairman and President, Dr. John B. Sheldon, explains. Without even knowing or asking for it, the past several weeks have …

The second #ActInSpace event will bring together young entrepreneurs, students, business leaders, developers, artists, and jobseekers to take part in a one-and-a-half-day-hackathon on Friday and Saturday, 20-21 May 2016. The aim of the #ActInSpace event is to come up with innovative ways to use space technologies for everyday uses. In …

As the Iraqi army inches closer to the Daesh-occupied city of Mosul, the extremist group is now banning the sale of satellite television receivers to the city’s residents, and confiscating receivers from cafés, restaurants, and other public spaces. These developments, reported by the news agency Reuters, are the latest in …

The successful launch on 28 April 2016 of the seventh satellite of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) means that the Middle East region will soon have a supplementary, or even alternative, satellite navigation saystem to the American Global Positioning System (GPS), Russia’s GLONASS, and Europe’s Galileo. The satellite, …

ThorGroup’s Chairman and President, Dr. John B. Sheldon, explores the role of space in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 recently announced economic and social reform programme. He argues that Vision 2030 is a golden opportunity for Saudi Arabian space. Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the son of King Salman and Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, …

China has announced that it intends to launch the core module of its space station by 2018, with the aim of having the manned space-based facility operational by around 2022. A spokesman for the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Mr. Wang Zhongyang, told Xinhua News Agency that the core …

In a clear reaction to collapsed relations with the Russian Federation, both Turkey and Ukraine have announced their intention to cooperate with each other in the development and manufacture of satellites, as well as collaboration on other strategic technologies. The announcement has come as a surprise to analysts, many of …