Botswana joins space leaders with BOTSAT - 1 launch
03 Mar 2025
LOS ANGELES - This week, Botswana is set to make history as it prepares to launch its first satellite, BOTSAT-1, joining a group of African countries, including Angola, Zimbabwe and Rwanda, that have successfully orbited satellites.
The launch will be witnessed by President Advocate Duma Boko, who arrived in United States of America on Sunday for a week-long working visit.
T h e M i n i s t e r o f Communications and Innovation, Mr David Tshere, expressed enthusiasm about the upcoming launch in an interview.
He stated that BOTSAT-1 r ep r es ent e d a sig n i f ica nt milestone in Botswana’s journey
into space technology.
“We are here as the Botswana delegation to witness this launch, which will take place in Los Angeles, California, as we tap into SpaceX’s satellite capabilities,” Mr Tshere explained.
He noted that BOTSAT-1 would be launched aboard a SpaceX rocket, capable of accommodating a hyper-spectral camera payload at an altitude of approximately 600 kilometers.
He said the satellite would orbit the earth continuously six times daily, transmitting and collecting data for various purposes.
In that regard, he explained that the launch takes place in California because back home
and in the continent, there was no space pad with a capacity to launch a satellite of that magnitude.
The satellite, he said, would communicate information that might be useful, tracking and
monitoring warning signs in the event of disaster and many different uses.
Mr Tshere said the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST)
has set up a data facility or ground station that would be storing information from the satellite, and would be used to inform decision making.
In future, he said the Ministry of Communications and Innovation intended to improve innovations in communication through the second satellite that would entail uper fast internet, among others.
Mr Tshere further said President Boko’s visit would further include holding high-level bilateral meetings and trade discussions aimed at attracting foreign direct
investment, expanding markets for Botswana’s products and promoting the country as a tourist destination and safe space for investment.
The President will tour the LA Clean Tech incubator, space rocket production facilities and Starlink mini production plants and attend a roundtable discussion on trade,
investment and partnership opportunities between Botswana and Los Angeles.
For his part, Minister of Higher Education, Mr Prince Maele said the launch of satellite
would enhance Botswana’s space education.
He said the satellite was an innovation of BIUST in partnership with EnduroSat, a Bulgaria-based satellite builder.
The minister said the satellite would last for seven years and has been designed to generate data that would support critical sectors of the economy such as mining,
agriculture and urban planning.
“This satellite would show high resolution images on the surface, that would provide accurate data to inform policy makers,” he said. ENDS
Source : BOPA
Author : Mmoniemang Motsamai
Location : Los Angeles, California
Event : Working visit
Date : 03 Mar 2025
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