Africa-Press – Angola. The Minister of Telecommunications, Information Technologies and Social Communication, Mário Augusto Oliveira, said, this Monday (10), in Moscow, Russia, that all the technical conditions are created for the launch into orbit, tomorrow, of Angosat-2. .
These statements were made after the arrival of the minister, who is accompanied by a high-level delegation and the ambassador of Angola to the Federative Republic of Russia, Augusto da Silva Cunha.
On the occasion, Mário Oliveira stressed that the advance team is already in the city of Baikonur, Kazakhstan, where the launch pad for the rocket that will transport the satellite into space is located.
The minister, who is traveling today to Kazakhstan, where the launch will take place, reiterated that all technical procedures had been approved and the satellite is ready to be launched into orbit tomorrow.
Asked if there is any risk of the same happening with Angosat-2 that happened with the first Angolan satellite, the official was optimistic, underlining: that “the satellite industry is complex and it is within this complexity that we have to see the probabilistic issues All technical actions were taken care of, but technology is made by men”.
By the way, he said he believed, taking into account the experience he adds in the area of Telecommunications and Technologies, as well as the information reported to him by the technical team that works with the Russian part that everything will go well.
He underlined that all conditions are in place, including from the atmospheric point of view. The atmospheric conditions, forecast for tomorrow, he stressed, are good and the satellite has technically passed all tests carried out on land.
“Everything will go well and Angola will have the communications satellite, which will contribute to the improvement and expansion of Telecommunications in the country and associated with it other services such as Internet, Telecommunications that will contribute to the administrative modernization of the State, Education, TeleHealth and TeleMedicina, from the industry in the country and from Agriculture”, he stressed.
For the minister Mário Oliveira, there is a set of services that, with the entry into service of Angosat-2, could make a very big contribution to the improvement and modernization of these services.
Staff training with Russia
Asked about the cooperation agreement with Russia in the field of training in terms of the space programme, Mário Oliveira recalled that Angola has worked with the Russian Federation throughout all these years in training Angolan staff.
At the moment, for example, he said, there are Angolan technicians working not only on the satellite construction phase, but also at the Funda Satellite Emission Control Center, in Luanda.
“We have prepared and certified young people who are in a position to maintain the satellite’s operation with Russian cooperation. We are on the right path and this will not be a problem in terms of the operation and management of the satellite once it is in orbit”, observed.
Regarding the perspective of other satellites, Mário Oliveira said: “we are talking about the first satellite, it is premature, today, to talk about another one, very soon”.
Angosat, he explained, does not appear in isolation, it is part of a program that includes the National Fiber Optic Network and the Submarine Fiber Optic Network. “Angosat is a component of this ecosystem with a view to improving the country’s communications,” she clarified.
As for the difference between Angosat-1 and 2, the Minister of Telecommunications explained that from the point of view of coverage there are no major differences. Angosat-1, he said, was expected to cover all of Africa and a significant part of Europe, but since then, he has reinforced, the satellite industry has modernized a lot and new bands have emerged, namely, the KA Band that was not foreseen in Angosat-1, but included in this second satellite. What he pointed out as one of the big news in this satellite.
Angolan astronauts is a possibility
In an interview with Ria-Novost, the second largest news agency in Russia, Mário Oliveira raised the possibility of Angola putting the first national astronauts in space with Russian support.
During the interview, the minister was confronted with the possibility, in the future, of Angola placing the first astronauts in space with the help of Russia: “It is possible. in the world of Space Science, where anything can happen. Angola has embraced agreements related to the authorization of space for peaceful purposes and within this framework a future is possible, we don’t know when, but it can happen”.
Angola and Russia have a cooperation that culminated in the construction and placement in orbit of Angosat-2 and, in this perspective, things have been going very naturally. “It’s a close relationship possible. In this we managed to reach a stage where we have the satellite ready to be placed in orbit”, he highlighted.
“The relationship is good and we believe that we will have success and the placement in orbit of Angosat-2”, continued Mário Oliveira.
Asked about the sanctions that Russia has been suffering since February 2022, resulting from the conflict with Ukraine and whether they affect relations between the two countries, the minister recalled that the situation is a diplomatic forum. “Angola has an Embassy in Russia and, in its own channels, I believe that the parties have been talking”, he concluded.
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