SumbandilaSat is shipped to Russia - the countdown begins!
7 December 2006
Cape Town - South Africa's own low-earth orbiting micro satellite
-SumbandilaSat - is set to leave South African soil for Russia today, ahead of
its launch into space off a submarine, in early 2007.
This follows an official ceremony wherein the Minister of Science and
Technology, Mosibudi Mangena, was presented with the fully completed
SumbandilaSat by its architects and manufacturers. Members of the media and key
stakeholders had the unique opportunity to view SumbandilaSat for the last time
on home ground at the handover ceremony held in Stellenbosch this morning.
The 81kg SumbandilaSat will generate satellite imagery through its remote
sensing camera at 6,25 metre ground sampling distance (GSD). This will form a
further and vital component of the country's ongoing earth observation
activities.
According to Minister Mangena: "The development of SumbandilaSat offers
South Africa a number of competitive advantages and will support decision
making in natural resource management and sustainable development." He added
that "the images yielded [by the satellite] will be used in various
applications which have direct benefits to societies, such as flood and fire
disaster management; enhancing food security through crop yield estimation;
ensuring better human and animal health through enabling the prediction of the
outbreaks of diseases; better monitoring of land cover and use as well improved
capabilities for water resource management."
Upon arrival in Russia, SumbandilaSat will be taken to the Russian naval
base at Murmansk, where it will be integrated with a launch rocket by the
Russian navy. The satellite will then be transported to a submarine at
Severemorsk, just off the Russian coast where it will be launched into
space.
The launch window period is between April and May 2007 and is strongly
dependent on weather conditions at the time. Once in orbit, SumbandilaSat will
pass over South Africa mid-morning and mid-evening at an average orbit altitude
of 500 kilometres.
In addition to its earth observation and communications payloads,
SumbandilaSat carries five experimental payloads, which will present the
scientific community with exciting results in low frequency radio waves,
radiation, software defined radio, forced vibrating string and radio amateur
transponders.
The actual construction of the SumbandilaSat was completed at the end of
September 2006 and was followed by a battery of trials, including functional
testing, space environmental testing, vibration testing and burn-in testing,
which were designed to establish the satellite's readiness prior to a Flight
Acceptance Review.
The environmental testing phase determined SumbandilaSat's ability to
withstand extreme variance in temperatures, while the vibration tests verified
its ability to endure the shocks it will undergo as it is launched into space.
The burn-in testing phase comprised the actual and continual running of the
satellite and its systems in order to confirm that all components are fully
functional.
This morning's hand-over ceremony was preceded by a rigorous Flight
Acceptance Review which was aimed at ensuring that all technical and
contractual obligations between the stakeholders have been met.
According to Harry Van der Heyden, Sunspace Project Manager for
SumbandilaSat, the review presentation: "included an introduction to the
hardware produced as well as the ground support equipment developed for the
satellite." He added that: "We also conducted demonstrations to illustrate how
the satellite communicates with the ground support equipment."
The birth of SumbandilaSat was initiated by the Department of Science and
Technology and was given life by numerous stakeholders including the University
of Stellenbosch, Sunspace, the South African Space Council, the Departments of
Foreign Affairs, Trade & Industry, and Communications, as well as the
Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research.
The launch of SumbandilaSat is envisaged to strengthen South Africa's
technological capability and innovation in space science and technology, as
well as reinforce the country's role in national, regional and international
space initiatives.
Enquiries:
Memory Mzilethi
Tel: (011) 315 0092
Fax: (011) 312 1321
E-mail: brite2@britespark.co.za
Kristin Klose
Cell: 082 902 9503
E-mail: Kristin.klose@dst.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
7 December 2006
Source: SAPA
