Kuwait Sat-1 reaches final stage of its launch

Kuwait, The Gulf Observer: The Kuwait Sat-1 satellite has reached the final stages of its launch and early orbit phase (LEOP), before it begins taking images of Kuwait, announced Dr Hala Al-Jassar, director of the national project for Kuwait Sat-1 backed by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences.

“This is an initial stage in which any satellite goes into orbit around Earth, which usually lasts for two to three months from the date of launch, during which the first signal is received and tests are conducted on the satellite. Moreover, all its systems are calibrated to ensure they work well and are performing their required functions,” Dr Jassar said.

“The technical team of the first Kuwaiti satellite is communicating with the satellite in an excellent way by sending and receiving signals from the earth station at the College of Science at Kuwait University. They are working 24/7 to ensure the safety of all systems, including the electric power system (EPS), which is responsible for generating power from solar cells and then storing it in a battery to be distributed to satellite systems,” she explained.

Dr Jassar pointed out the safety of the Attitude Determination And Control System (ADCS), which is responsible for ensuring the stability and guidance of the satellite during the orbit phase, has been successfully verified, and that work is ongoing daily by the technical team to verify the safety of all other systems in order to ensure they are working well.

“Soon, after completing all tests of the Kuwait Sat-1 satellite systems, the camera will be operated to take images of Kuwait, which will be sent to the ground station at the College of Science at Kuwait University to be used for environmental and other applications by researchers and students,” she added.