Mongolia hopes to launch space satellite by 2015

Mongolia hopes to launch space satellite by 2015, reported Mongolian media today. According to the report, Japanese space exploration team visited Mongolia and organized 2-day workshop at Mongolian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Representatives of Mongolian government ministries and agencies such as Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, Information and Telecommunications technology and Postal agency, Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industries and Ministry of Minerals, Ministry of Road, Construction, Urban Planning and Ministry of Tourism and Natural Environment and National Center of Remote Sensing took part in the workshop.
Japanese team consisted of representatives from Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, Technology and Mitsubishi, Toshiba, NiK, Hitachi, “JSAT” and Sumitomi corporations and Japanese Aerospace Exploration agency, Remote sensing technological Center, Japanese Institute for Unmanned Space Experiment Free Flyer and Japanese Society of Aerospace manufacturers

Amgalanbat, official of Mongolian Information and Telecommunications technology and Postal agency said “ Mongolian Government considers launching Mongolian satellite into space as important project that can contribute significantly to economic development of country. Today’s workshop on Japanese aerospace technology with public and private sector participation is aimed at exchange of opinion and learning from Japanese experience on using space technology, communication and remote sensing in all sectors of economy. Currently, Mongolia is conducting comprehensive study on possibility of launching communications satellite and need of remote sensing in Mongolia. We are hoping to launch national satellite by 2015”.
Mongolia now uses “Ipstar-5” broadband satellite for delivery of TV and radio programs in rural area and “Intelsat” satellite for telecommunications and mobile phone services and receives digital data on weather and natural disaster from low-earth orbit satellites.

By Batjargal, reporter of Mongolianviews.com