Egypt has sent a mini-satellite to the International Space Station, where it will be put into orbit next week, a senior Egyptian official said on Sunday.
The CubeSat was completely designed, built and tested in Egypt, Mohamed Zahran, Chief of the National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences, told Egypt’s MENA news agency.
Egypt cooperated with the Japanese Space Agency on testing the satellite before being shipped to the United States, where it was launched Saturday among other items into space by a Falcon-9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida, Zahran added.
Reportedly the satellite weighs 1 kg in mass and costs around 1m Egyptian pounds (approx. $60,000).
The Egyptian official stated that the satellite is designed for research purposes, adding that it will also test space systems developed by the Egyptian space agency.
Another satellite of the same kind will be sent to space within two months, he revealed.
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