VN ready to launch first remote sensing satellite

VGP – The first remote sensing satellite, VNRED Sat-1, of Viet Nam will be launched by the Arianespace at the Guiana Space Center, French Guiana on May 3 (local time).

May 01, 2013 6:55 PM GMT+7

The VEGA rocket carrying Viet Nam's VNREDSat-1 Guiana Space Center in Kourou on April 30, 2013

VNRED Sat-1 was transported to the launching base in Kourou on March 8, according to the Viet Nam Institute of Space Technology.

It will then connect with the remote sensing satellite image receiving, storing and processing system run by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to form a completed system.

With this satellite, high-resolution satellite images will be proactively supplied for ministries, sectors, provinces and cities to serve their natural resources and environmental management and monitoring of natural disasters.

VNRED Sat-1 will be launched into sun synchronous orbit (SSO) at an altitude of nearly 670 km.

VNRED Sat-1 with a five-year life span has the total investment of €55.8 million sourced by the French Government’s Official Development Assistance and the Vietnamese side’s contribution of nearly VND65 billion (around $3.2 million).

This will mark an important turning point in the history of the Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST) and open up a new chapter for local scientists to study and conquer space, said Bui Trong Tuyen, Deputy Head of the Viet Nam Institute of Space Technology.

Earlier, Viet Nam launched two telecommunication satellites, Vinasat 1 and Vinasat 2 in 2008 and 2012, respectively./.

By Huong Giang