Egypt is preparing to launch a new satellite next year designed and made by university students, according to Mohamed El Qousi, the head of the Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA). The project, called 'universities' satellites', is a collaboration with Japan.
El Qousi noted that the designs for the satellite have been finalised and the environmental tests are currently underway. Since 2016, The EgSA has been keen on localising the space industry and honing the skills of Egyptian students in the design of satellite components.
Every university will help in designing and making a part of the satellite. Senior students will then assemble the satellite under the supervision of EgSA.
The Satellite to be launched is a miniaturised CubeSat satellite for space research made of small cubic modules. CubeSats have a mass of no more than 1.33 kilograms per unit and use commercial-grade components.
The satellite will use sensor applications and will be equipped with cameras to take pictures of the planet Earth. While the data collected from the project would not be on the same level of data collected by professional and large satellites, the project will be a great achievement for the Egyptian university community.
