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Sri Lanka News | Online edition of Daily News - Lakehouse Newspapers
Sri Lanka will open a space academy to train astrounauts in Koggala next year.
The programme will be launched as a joint venture between Supreme Satellite Pvt limited, Colombo and Chinas biggest satellite manufacturing institution, Great Wall Corporation. (CGWIC)
A 30 acre land has been demarcated in Koggala and applications to select students would be called soon, SupremeSAT Managing Director R.M. Manivannan said.
The company will invest US $ 20 million for the project which comes under the BOI. US $ 10 million would be invested this year, he said.
We will build a satellite ground station in Koggala to oversee our satellite operations.
He said they have co-branded satellites with the Chinese company. The facility could be used by other countries in the region.
The programme will save money being paid by local companies to foreign satellite operaters and bring in foreign exchange to Sri Lanka, he said.
He said the support he received for the project from President Mahinda Rajapaksa, BOI and the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission was encouraging and was a great motivation for him.
It has been decided to offer the satellite service free to the Disaster Management Ministry so that they could predict natural disasters in advance, he said. Manivannan said by next June, they would acquire their second satellite and by 2015, would own a specially made satellite. Established in 1980, CGWIC is the sole commercial organization authorized by the Chinese government to provide satellites, commercial launch services and to carry out international space cooperation. The company has signed nine contracts with international customers for the manufacture and in-orbit delivery of telecommunication satellites, out of which four have been launched into orbit, whilst the other two are set to be launched next year.
About 48.9 percent of all satellites are used for commercial purposes (satellite radio, satellite TV, satellite internet). While 25.1 percent are used for military purposes. The rest are for governmental/civilian functions.
More than making profits I want to help my mother land, Manivannan said.
China to send Sri Lanka astronaut into space
There is a possibility of Sri Lanka sending an astronaut into space in less than four years.
This historic task has been undertaken by the Sri Lankan company SupremeSAT and Chinas state- owned biggest satellite manufacturing institution, Great Wall Corporation.
The agreement will be signed in Beijing where the Chinese company is based.
SupremeSAT Managing Director R M Manivannan said SupremeSAT has already written a new chapter in Sri Lankan history by becoming the first institution in Sri Lanka to own a satellite.
We have a co-branded satellite with the Chinese company in orbit from last month.
Our next step is the building of our own company satellite at the Great Wall Corporation facility. This would be ready in two years and then it would be the first Sri Lankan owned satellite," he said.
The total investment for this would be around US $ 300 million.
Manivannan said their next aim is to train Sri Lankan youths with space technology and this would be initially done in China. "We will soon call for applications for 'would be astronauts'. After going through their records , we will send them for training to China," he said.**
"After three to four years, they will be able to undertake missions in space and sending a Sri Lankan to space would no longer be a dream," he said.
Sri Lanka will open a space academy to train astrounauts in Koggala next year.
The programme will be launched as a joint venture between Supreme Satellite Pvt limited, Colombo and Chinas biggest satellite manufacturing institution, Great Wall Corporation. (CGWIC)
A 30 acre land has been demarcated in Koggala and applications to select students would be called soon, SupremeSAT Managing Director R.M. Manivannan said.
The company will invest US $ 20 million for the project which comes under the BOI. US $ 10 million would be invested this year, he said.
We will build a satellite ground station in Koggala to oversee our satellite operations.
He said they have co-branded satellites with the Chinese company. The facility could be used by other countries in the region.
The programme will save money being paid by local companies to foreign satellite operaters and bring in foreign exchange to Sri Lanka, he said.
He said the support he received for the project from President Mahinda Rajapaksa, BOI and the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission was encouraging and was a great motivation for him.
It has been decided to offer the satellite service free to the Disaster Management Ministry so that they could predict natural disasters in advance, he said. Manivannan said by next June, they would acquire their second satellite and by 2015, would own a specially made satellite. Established in 1980, CGWIC is the sole commercial organization authorized by the Chinese government to provide satellites, commercial launch services and to carry out international space cooperation. The company has signed nine contracts with international customers for the manufacture and in-orbit delivery of telecommunication satellites, out of which four have been launched into orbit, whilst the other two are set to be launched next year.
About 48.9 percent of all satellites are used for commercial purposes (satellite radio, satellite TV, satellite internet). While 25.1 percent are used for military purposes. The rest are for governmental/civilian functions.
More than making profits I want to help my mother land, Manivannan said.
China to send Sri Lanka astronaut into space
There is a possibility of Sri Lanka sending an astronaut into space in less than four years.
This historic task has been undertaken by the Sri Lankan company SupremeSAT and Chinas state- owned biggest satellite manufacturing institution, Great Wall Corporation.
The agreement will be signed in Beijing where the Chinese company is based.
SupremeSAT Managing Director R M Manivannan said SupremeSAT has already written a new chapter in Sri Lankan history by becoming the first institution in Sri Lanka to own a satellite.
We have a co-branded satellite with the Chinese company in orbit from last month.
Our next step is the building of our own company satellite at the Great Wall Corporation facility. This would be ready in two years and then it would be the first Sri Lankan owned satellite," he said.
The total investment for this would be around US $ 300 million.
Manivannan said their next aim is to train Sri Lankan youths with space technology and this would be initially done in China. "We will soon call for applications for 'would be astronauts'. After going through their records , we will send them for training to China," he said.**
"After three to four years, they will be able to undertake missions in space and sending a Sri Lankan to space would no longer be a dream," he said.
