Middle East

Officials from the Russian state space corporation Roscosmos have indicated that the first Emirati human spaceflight mission will take place in September to October 2019 and will last eight days, a change from the initial plan to send the UAE's first astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS) in April 2019 for mission lasting 10 days.

It has been announced that the UAE Space Agency is building three satellites that will help to address climate change and other scientific challenges.

Sky and Space Global Ltd. (SAS), the Australian Stock Exchange-listed narrowband satellite communications company, announced on 21 January 2019 that it has signed a Reseller Memorandum of Understanding with Global Telesat SL and a Trial Service Agreement with Telespazio Brasil S/A.

The UAE Space Agency (UAESA) has launched a National Plan for the Promotion of Space Investment aiming to increase domestic and foreign investment in the UAE space sector.

Days after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani defiantly declared that Tehran will launch several satellites using indigenous launch vehicles over "the coming weeks," Iran followed through on its promise by attempting to launch its Payam-e Amirabir-1 Earth observation microsatellite on 15 January 2019, using a Simorgh satellite launch vehicle. The launch ended in failure when the third stage of the Simorgh SLV failed to put the satellite into its intended orbit.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani struck a defiant note on 11 January 2019 when he countered the U.S. threat of consequences should his government carry out the launch of two satellites using an Iranian satellite launch vehicle.

As Iran makes preparation to launch three satellites using Iranian launch vehicles, the United States has warned Tehran not to conduct the launches and condemned the Iranian space programme as a deceptive measure that in reality is designed to help build long-range ballistic missiles.

Ben-Gurion University (BGU) researchers in Israel have developed a new satellite imaging system that could revolutionize the economics and imagery available from space-based cameras and even Earth-based telescopes.

The University of Sharjah signed a cooperation agreement with Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary Company to share space technology and systems located in Astana, Kazakhstan. It is one of the largest national companies in Kazakhstan specializing in Earth remote sensing.

The deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Brigadier General Hossein Salami, announced on 29 December 2018 that Iranian experts have successfully built radars capable of monitoring satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), according Iranian news reporting.