Government

As Kuwait considers its space future, SpaceWatch Middle East contributor Ghanim Alotaibi, a Kuwaiti engineer and Space Generation Advisory Council member, examines some of the challenges Kuwaiti leaders will have to address in the first of a series of articles that will be published in the coming weeks. Introduction Two years ago, a …

The Turkish Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communication, Ahmet Arslan, stated on 25 August 2016 that the tender period for Türksat 5A and Türksat 5B communication satellites will be completed in 1.5 – 2 months. He said, “At this year’s final quarter by drawing up contracts concerning Türksat 5A …

It was announced on 27 August 2016 that the UAE Space Agency is discussing means of joint cooperation with South Korea in the fields of peaceful exploration of outer space and space sector development. The negotiations are part of the Space Agency’s continued efforts to build bilateral relations with nations …

Shareholder’s of Israel’s Spacecom, operator of the Amos fleet of commercial communications satellites, announced on 24 August 2016 that they has agreed to sell the company for U.S.$285 million to Chinese telecommunications company Beijing Xinwei Technology Group Co. Ltd. It is believed that the sale will proceed, subject to Israeli …

Qatar’s Es’hailSat has announced that it’s Es’hail-2 satellite will now be launched in the third quarter of 2017 rather than in December 2016 as originally planned. There has been no word as to why the launch date for Es’hail-2 has slipped by at least six months. Es’hail-2 will be launched …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani appointed three new members to the Supreme Council of Space – the supreme space policy-making body in Iran – on 14 August 2016. The three individuals appointed to the Supreme Council of Space are Elham Aminzadeh, Mostafa Safavi-Homami and Hassan Shafti. Each appointment lasts for four …

Yahlive, the Abu Dhabi-based satellite joint venture between the world leading satellite operator SES and UAE satellite company Yahsat, announced on 16 August 2016 that it has signed a contract renewal with the BBC World Service. As part of the ongoing agreement, the BBC will continue the broadcast of its …

Space and satellites are often treated as an intrinsically exciting and glamorous field of activity. Yet the issue of spectrum requirements, regulatory filings, and spectrum management are all too often considered to be unglamorous, and as a result are unfairly and dangerously ignored. The reality is that without a competent …

With the regular occurrence of satellite jamming in the Middle East, scientists at the Germany space agency – DLR – seem to have come up with one solution that might mitigate the worst effects of this phenomenon. Ships can be led astray with fake GPS signals. If signals for navigation …

Algeria’s AlSat-Nano is being readied for launch sometime between late August and early September 2016 from the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Andhra Pradesh on the eastern coast of India. AlSat-Nano is sharing the launch into orbit on an ISRO Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) …