Sumbandila Sat

Sumbandila Sat

SumbandilaSat (formerly ZASAT-002, AMSAT designation SO-67), is a South African micro earth observation satellite, launched 2009-09-17 on a Soyuz-2 launch vehicle from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The first part of the name, Sumbandila, is from the Venda language and means "lead the way".

The University of Stellenbosch, SunSpace and the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) were key players in constructing SumbandilaSat. The CSIR's Satellite Application Centre (CSIR-SAC) will be responsible for operations, telemetry, tracking, control as well as data capturing.

SumbandilaSat is part of a closely integrated South African space programme and will serve as a research tool to investigate the viability of affordable space technology. Furthermore, the data will be used to, amongst others, monitor and manage disasters such as flooding, oil spills and fires within Southern Africa.

Read more about Sumbandila Sat:  Launch Site, Satellite Specifications, On-board Experiments, See Also

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