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Securing Independent Scientific Capabilities

Apart from making investments to ensure a better future with equal scientific and footing rather than continual reliance on other countries, (I remember also reading elsewhere that) Nigeria will also help other African nations who currently rely on non-African countries to help provide the satellite photos and images they require for their developmental purposes also.
Simultaneously, Nigeria is also creating employment opportunities for brains that would have been drained to other foreign nations.

Cxsm
1/13/04

Nigeria in Space: Dividends from a National Space Policy

05 January, 2004,

Before 2003, multilateral institutions and intergovernmental agencies such as Intelast, Immarsat, Rascom, Copuos, etc., provided most of the space products used by Nigeria.

Although such services have helped to serve the socio-economic needs of the country, Nigeria desired the technological know-how to become a space services provider and an active participant in space-related activities. This desire was borne out of the need to manage its landmass and the environmental challenges it poses to the country's social and economic development.

With an area that covers 924, 000 square kilometers and a wide range of agro-ecological zones (rainforest, guinea savannah, sudan savannah and sahelian vegetation), the country is richly endowed and is classified as having abundant natural resources. At the same time, she increasingly faces the challenges of growing environmental degradation, desertification, soil erosion as well as loss of biodiversity.

Nigeria therefore needed urgent geological information to face and surmount these challenges, enhance decision-making and grow its economy. Thus, acquiring space technology became a necessity, in order to master, develop and use its products to address the diverse socio-economic challenges.

Space Policy

The National Space Policy and Programmes, approved in June 2001, was designed to assist Nigeria attain space capabilities for development. The policy objectives are to be achieved through research, education, engineering, development, design and manufacture of appropriate hardware and software in space technology. Among the hardware and software listed in the programme are transport and payloads such as satellites and telescopes antennas for scientific research as well as other space applications.

Through the implementation of the policy programmes and activities, the country hopes to:

·Attain food security by developing and managing agriculture and forestry resources through the establishment of database for project planning, crop performance assessment, and food yield.

·Assess and manage air, land, mineral and water resources by determining quality and quantity of her surface and underground water, enhancing oil exploration, exploitation and management activities, and monitoring of marine life

·Develop an effective and efficient communication system

·Develop transport and tourism enterprises

·Develop education and health care delivery systems in both urban and rural areas

·Develop and manage energy resources

·Ensure human safety and mitigate disasters, and

·Promote national defence and security.

Because of the multi-disciplinary nature of space technology, government embarked on the establishment of centers of excellence, to provide the institutional backbone for the development of the various fields, and to coordinate the different programmes in the national space agenda.

There are six such centers at the moment:

·Center for Basic Space Science: This center is to build the manpower and infrastructure for understanding how the universe works and its impact on the nation.

·Center for Remote Sensing: The center develops the technology to obtain data about objects on the surface of the earth from space. Space data collected are used to understand and manage environmental and natural resources.

·Center for Satellite Technology Development: This center is the primary focus for the development of satellite payloads for geostationary and non-geostationary satellites. The Center fabricated and launched Nigeria's Nigersat-1 into orbit. It also works with other agencies, institutions and companies in capacity building and development of advance satellite systems for both remote sensing applications and communications

·Center for Geodesy and Geodynamics: The center produces needed manpower and hardware capability to address national issues such as surveying and mapping, coastal deformation and subsidence, and floods and global mean sea level.
The center also serves as hub for national participation in all international cooperative programmes and projects for applied space geodesy that are consistent with the country's goals for national security, economic development and environmental hazard and management

·Center for Space Transport and Propulsion: The center is established to develop rocket technology capability such as space transport vehicles, manufacture necessary rocket components, and develop various rocket propulsion fuels and the technology to launch rockets for both military and civil applications

·Center for Space Science and Technology Education (CESSTE): This Centre is an educational and research institution that develops skills and knowledge of university educators, research scientist and other personnel.

International Cooperation

The National Space Policy and Programmes was also designed to foster bi-lateral and international cooperation in all aspects of space science and technology. This is to ensure that local scientists and engineers benefit from global developments.

Developments in 2003

The Centre of Satellite Technology Development, in collaboration with a British firm, fabricated and launched Nigeria's first orbital satellite, called NigeriaSat-1, on 27 September 2003.

Though launched from Russia, the Satellite's ground monitoring and vision control station is situated in Abuja and is manned by 15 Nigerian scientists trained by the National Space Research and Development Agency.

NigeriaSat-1 takes photos and images of the country, which are beamed back for use in various areas of her socio-economic development.

In addition, the Federal Executive Council on 12 November 2003 approved the setting up of a committee to coordinate the launching of a communications satellite in orbit.

The committee, is chaired by the Minister of Science and technology, Professor Turner Isoun and has as members the ministers of Defence, Communications, Finance, and Information as well as three representatives from the private sector.

The Committee was mandated to ensure that the communication satellite project is commercially viable and is capable of positioning Nigeria on a sound and competitive space technology footing.

Related Article:

NigeriaSat-1 launched

admin · Site Admin Joined: 25 May 2007 Posts: 5404

Developing Nations Set Sights on Space

Nigerian Guardian
2/12/04

The recent successes of United States Mars Rover may be the inspiration for developing nations such as Nigeria, Brazil, China, Japan, India and Russia, with a budget of 3.510 billion dollars to make a mark in space reports CHUKWUMA MUANYA

With a budget of $3.510 billion or N526.5 billion, developing nations such as Nigeria, Brazil, China, India, Japan and Russia are trying to make a mark in space.

A breakdown of the budget, according to the President Nigeria Academy of Science (NAS), Professor Gabriel B. Ogunmola shows that Nigeria budgeted 22.4 million dollars or N3.360 billion naira on its first satellite-Nigeria Sat 1 built by Britain and launched by Russia last year, but which was controlled by Nigerian scientists in Abuja.

He said: "Brazil with a budget of 3.6 million dollars, lost one of its satellite rockets in an explosion on the launched last August, killing 21. They are still optimistic of launching their rocket before 2006.

"China has enmarked $2 billion for its space program. In October, 2003, it became the third nations to send an astronaut into orbit. It wants to land an unmanned vehicle on the moon by 2110-five years before National Aeronautic Space Agency or American Space Agency (NASA) next plans to set foot there.

"India has a budget of 450 million dollars, and its largely civilian aspiration involve communications, agriculture and meteorology. But it wants to explore the moon by 2008.

"With an active program of intelligence-gathering satellites and a budget of 1.8 billion dollars, Japan will launch a probe to dig into the moon this year and hopes to have a space laboratory completed by 2008.

"Russia with a budget of 188 million dollars for its space program has launched more vehicles into space than any other nation, but severe budget problems forced it to abandon a moon flight program."

Ogunmola told The Guardian that though no one, not even European Space Agency (ESA) with a budget of 3.6 billion dollars and Britain with a budget of 310 million dollars, comes close to NASA's 15.5 billion annual budget.

Ogunmola argues that other African countries. South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, and Algeria, according to Ogunmola, are Space technology can help Nigerian overcome some of its earthly problems. "For instance, the satellite, built at a cost of 13 million dollars, will provide information about Nigerian forests and water resources, as well as allowing government officials to keep track of oil fields.

"Nigeria kick-started its space programm by tapping a commercial satellite marker, British-based Surrey Satellite Technology Limited, which build a micro-satellite and a ground-control station for the country. The contract included 18 months of training, including teaching about 15 Nigerian scientists how to design, build and operate satellites," Ogunmola said.

The NAS President said that by launching the refrigerator size Nigeria Sat-1 in September, 2003, atop a Russian rocket, Nigerian quickly distinguished itself from other African nations that have a presence in space.

admin · Site Admin Joined: 25 May 2007 Posts: 5404

Nigeria's Satellite Takes Images of Nigeria, Liberia

Andy Ekugo
Abuja

The first Nigeria-owned Earth Observation micro-satellite,
NigeriaSat-1, launched into orbit on September 27 2003 from Russia has captured images of Nigeria and Liberia according to Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL), builders of the satellite.

The implication of this development according to SSTL, is that all subsystems in the satellite are performing well thereby positioning Nigeria to take advantage of the Standard Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC), component of Nigeriasat-1.

Nigeriasat-1 is in constellation (group) of micro-satellites with
three other satellites owned by the United Kingdom, Algeria and
Turkey. A fifth micro-satellite being built for China by SSTL will also be launched into orbit next year, bringing the number in the group to five.

SSTL further explained that since the launch, all the space- craft have been "3-axis stabilize nadir-pointing and primary system and imaging payloads have been successfully checked out".

SSTL also revealed that telemetry, (activity of gathering data about remote objects and transmitting it electronically), was received from each of the ground stations of the respective component micro-satellites three hours after launch of the satellites in the United Kingdom, Nigeria and Turkey.

Outlining the benefits of the space investment to Nigeria, SSTL a
company formed in 1985 by the University of Surrey in England "to
commercialize the result of its small satellite engineering
research", stated that the Earth Observation micro-satellite "can be used to support population census and control of malaria directly affecting peoples' everyday lives". The micro-Satellite can ordinarily be used to monitor agriculture, environmental, land resource management and urban planning including "man-made disaster monitoring and mitigation.

It also revealed that being a member of that international constellation, Nigeria will be able to image anywhere in the world within 24 hours as against once in five days if she had Nigeriasat-1 orbits alone. The company stated that although Nigeria spent money on one satellite, it brings a benefit of five satellites to the country and a good commercial potential.

With the capability to image scenes as large as 640x560 kilometre, Nigeriasat-1 will provide data, which will be used within Nigeria to monitor pollution, land use and other phenomena. The Professor Sir Martin Sweeting-led SSTL built the micro-satellite with 15 Nigerian scientists in Surrey England within 15 months. The satellite is equipped with "optical imaging payload to provide 32-m ground resolution with exceptionally wide swath width of over 640 km and uses green, red or near infra-red bands equivalent to Landsat bands 2, 3 and 4.

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May we be strengthened with the ability, willingness and capabilities to be good ambassadors of Nigeria contributing to its uplifting, rather than its detriment. - Cxsm