HÀ NỘI – MicroDragon, a made-in-Việt Nam earth observation satellite, will be launched into space early next year.
The Việt Nam National Space Centre (VNSC) under the Việt Nam Academy of Science and Technology said take-off had been planned for January 17 from Japan.
MicroDragon and six Japanese satellites will be launched by an Epsilon-4 rocket from the Uchinoura Space Centre in Kagoshima Prefecture at 9:50:20-9:59:37 (local time). MicroDragon will be separated from the rocket at a height of 511 kilometres.
It was developed by 36 Vietnamese engineers from the VNSC, who were sent to study space technology in Japan’s top five universities, namely the University of Tokyo, Keio University, Hokkaido University, Tohoku University and Kyushu Institute of Technology.
Construction of the satellite began in 2013 and tests were successfully completed last year.
Measuring 50x50x50 centimetres and weighing 50 kilograms, the satellite is designed to monitor the quality of water in coastal areas, locate fishery resources, and observe changes in the ocean to assist the nation’s aquaculture.
It will also help exchange database with the Microsatellite community in the world to enhance capacity in response to climate change and natural disasters.
Earlier, VNSC engineers successfully made a satellite named PicoDragon (10x10x11.35 centimeters, 1 kg), which was launched into orbit in 2013. As scheduled, after MicroDragon, Việt Nam will make LOTUSat-1 and LOTUSat-2 satellites with advanced radar technology, each weighing 600kg and measuring 1.5×1.5×3 meters with a 5-year lifetime in orbit. — VNS
