Scientists carry out final safety checks on KhalifaSat ahead of launch

The first-ever entirely Emirati-designed satellite will launch from Japan in two weeks

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, pictured at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre earlier this year. Wam

The final technical safety check tests have been carried on KhalifaSat ahead of its October 29 launch.

The first-ever entirely Emirati-designed satellite is scheduled to launch into the skies aboard an H-IIA rocket from the Tanegashima Space Centre in Japan.

Until then, the satellite is being stored in a specially designed area called the Vehicle Assembly Building. The satellite is required to stay in that area between 5 to 40 days before the launch date.

On Sunday, technical tests to determine KhalifaSat's battery and sub-system safety on the H-IIA rocket were completed. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries provided the team with all the necessary facilities to carry out the tests.

Yousef Al Shaibani, director general of Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, said the tests are an "important step" in preparation for the launch.

Once deployed, the satellite will spend five years in a Low Earth Orbit (about 613km up) where it will capture and deliver high-quality detailed images of Earth to the ground station at MBRSC, Dubai.

Weighing 330kg, KhalifaSat contains an advanced positioning system that allows many 3-D images to be accurately and quickly captured at once and stored. The images will be used to detect the effects of global warming, inform urban planning and aid relief efforts for natural disasters.

_____________

Read more:

We have lift-off: UAE's Khalifa Sat to be launched into space

UAE's KhalifaSat heads to Japan later this month

_____________

KhalifaSat will be third UAE satellite to be launched into space, after DubaiSat-1 and DubaiSat-2. Its development began in 2013 after an announcement about the space bid by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.

It is also the first satellite to be developed at Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre's tech laboratories.