Tag Archives: Space Cooperation

Some unnamed European Union member states are discussing the possibility of creating a European space force according to Elzbieta Bienkowska, the European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, and Entrepreneurship and who is also in charge of EU space policy.

Didier Reynders, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence of the Kingdom of Belgium, and Etienne Schneider, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, signed a joint declaration at the Palais d'Egmont in Brussels on 23 January 2019 in which the two countries commit to collaborate on the development of an international framework for the exploration and utilisation of space resources.

SIAP, the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food - part of the Mexican Ministry of Agriculture (SAGARPA) - has signed a declaration of intent with the UK Space Agency to provide historic, statistical and satellite data to support Rezatec's development of a crop yield optimisation tool for Mexican farmers and other supply chain stakeholders.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will deliver five ground stations and a total of 500 Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT) to enable its neighbours to benefit from satellite-based services such as TV, Internet, telephone, disaster management, and telemedicine.

Ethiopia's state-owned telecommunications provider, Ethio Telecom, is considering acquiring a communications satellite in order to provide connectivity to rural Ethiopia as well as to economic sectors in the northeast African country that will benefit from telecommunications infrastructure, such as agriculture and mining, according to a news story published in Ethiopian news outlet The Reporter.

Human space exploration has received another significant boost with the successful landing of a Chinese probe on the far side of the moon – a feat that has never before been accomplished. Chinese state media confirmed that the spacecraft had performed a ‘soft landing’ at 10.26am (2.26am GMT) on January 2. The confirmation came after an earlier tweet was deleted from China Daily and various other sources, proclaiming the mission a success.

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.

As 2018 comes to an end, we would like to take a moment and look back at some of the high - and low points of the last year. 2018 was a great year - no deadly accidents, more launches then ever and new space agencies around the globe.

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.

The Indian government announced on 28 December 2018 that its Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission expected to take place in 2022 will consist of three crew members, last for five to seven days in orbit, and is budgeted for the equivalent of U.S.$1.43 billion, according to Indian media reports.