News

The head of the Iranian Space Agency (ISA), Mohsen Bahrami, announced on 12 July 2016 that Iran will launch at least two indigenously built satellites by March 2017. Speaking at a press conference, Dr. Bahrami said, “At-Sat [also known as AUTSAT-1], Nahid 1, and Dousti are the satellites their design …

One senior Arab space official is once said to have quipped that his country does not need a meteorological satellite since he knows what the weather will be next year, never mind tomorrow. Jokes aside, the Middle East has a more varied climate than many suppose, and has weather variations …

Haifa, 12 July 2016 . Today is an important day for the space sector in the Middle East. It is the opening day of the 29th Space Studies Program 2016 of the International Space University. The event will finish on 1 September 2016. This prestigious post graduate university program is …

Virgin Galactic Ltd., the commercial space company founded by British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, is set to resume test flights next month in a new spaceship that replaces the one that crashed in a fatal accident two years ago. Aabar Investments of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, owns a 37.8 …

The Israeli government signed a five-year agreement with the fixed commercial satellite communications provider Spacecom Satellite Communications Ltd. worth U.S.$63 million. The agreement is for the provision of commercial satellite communications services to the Israeli government, and has a provision to be extended for another eight-years that would make the …

Satelites make a better World, by the Society of Satellite Professionals International: It can literally be a line in the sand or a fence made of concertina wire. A guard outpost on a busy road. A strip of unoccupied beach. A patch of trackless forest. A river snaking its way …

Gilat is to combine its SkyEdge II-c VSATs and CellEdge small cells to meet the rural communications requirements of the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC). Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd., the Israel-based provider in satellite networking technology, solutions and services, announced on 5 July 2016 that Dizengoff Ghana Limited, …

Egypt, backed by Syria, has proposed an in-depth discussion on using satellites to counter terrorism at the United Nation’s space body, the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS). The proposal came in the form of a short paper titled “Combating Terrorism using Space Technology,” drafted by Egyptian …

The Iranian Space Agency (ISA) completed its conceptual design for a manned spacecraft, including a human-rated space capsule and a launch vehicle, according to a report from Iranian news outlet, Tasnim News Agency. The human-rated space capsule will weigh one ton, and will be launched into space and safely returned …

SpaceWatch Middle East wishes all of our Muslim friends and leaders a Blessed Eid and our warm wishes to you and your families!