The Egyptian Space Agency is spearheading several ambitious projects designed to tackle climate change and solidify Africa's presence in space exploration.
Dr Sherif Sedky, CEO of Egyptian Space Agency, has announced that the African Development Satellite (AfDevSat), a collaborative effort involving Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda, remains on schedule for launch by the year’s end. This satellite is specifically designed for climate change studies, with each participating country responsible for specific subsystems while Egypt leads in design, assembly, integration, testing, and launch. To prepare, representatives from these nations underwent training at the Egyptian Space Agency on satellite subsystem construction.
Dr Sedky also revealed another initiative: the installation of a remote-sensing camera on the International Space Station (ISS), supported by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and in partnership with Airbus. Egypt, Kenya, and Uganda are collaborating on this project, which aims to bolster Egypt’s contributions to space exploration by designing, assembling, and testing the camera domestically before its deployment on the ISS.
Additionally, Dr Sedky highlighted the “SPINX” project, funded by the Academy of Scientific Research, which focuses on launching a satellite dedicated to studying climate change by the end of 2024.
