ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will launch an indigenously developed remote sensing satellite in July, Foreign Office spokesman Dr. Mohammad Faisal tweeted on Sunday.
Built by the country’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), PakTES-1A weighs 285 kg.
Faisal applauded Pakistani scientists for developing the satellite, which will provide wide-ranging information from space.
Earth observation satellites such as PakTES-1A have a number of non-military applications, and in many cases are used for environmental, agricultural or meteorological purposes.
Pakistan’s first indigenously developed satellite, Badr-1, was launched into low Earth orbit in July 1990 with the help of a Chinese rocket carrier. Badr-2 was launched in December 2001 to explore the upper atmosphere and near space.
Regional ally China announced earlier this year that it would launch two remote sensing satellites for Pakistan, Geo TV reported.
Three more satellites are being designed by SUPARCO “in collaboration with different universities throughout China,” the Pakistani news channel reported.
