Dubai's DMSat-1 begins scientific mission

Dubai successfully launched its first nanometric environmental satellite on Monday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The first signal from DMSat-1 was received at Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre’s (MBRSC) mission control centre at 4.42 PM, after the lift off at 10.07am UAE time.

The satellite that was on board a Russian-made Soyuz 2.1a rocket reached its orbit 550km above Earth. The satellite, which was developed by the Dubai Municipality, in collaboration with the MBRSC, has already begun its scientific mission.

DMSat-1, which is the fourth satellite in orbit to be operated by the MBRSC, was manufactured by engineers at Space Flight Laboratory (SFL) at the University of Toronto and a team from Dubai’s space centre supervised the development and worked on the final testing of the satellite before moving it abroad.

Footage of the Soyuz-2.1a rocket carrying the DMSat-1 hurtling towards space.#DMSat1#UAE4BetterEnvironment@DMunicipality pic.twitter.com/0qz8m8wPFe

— MBR Space Centre (@MBRSpaceCentre) March 22, 2021

After the successful launch, DMSat-1 began the in-orbit testing, calibration and validation phase to ensure all systems and instruments on board are fully functional and ready for the next phase.

During its second phase, set to commence in the coming days, the satellite will monitor, collect and analyse environmental data and study and monitor seasonal changes of greenhouse gases that will help build sustainable cities.

The data will be stored on the onboard storage system and downloaded to MBRSC’s ground station.

Dawoud AlHajri, Director, Dubai Municipality, opined, “DMSat-1 is an embodiment of the will to excel that characterises the UAE. Guided by the wisdom of our leadership, our national space programme has been able to engage in qualitative areas and enhance its contributions to human civilisation.”