26.10.2017

Under the patronage of HRH Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan, Jordanian students are nearing the complete construction of Jordan’s first indigenously built satellite, JY1-SAT – a Cubesat designed for research and experimental purposes, but that will also broadcast images of Jordanian tourist and heritage sites as well as other communications applications.

JY1-SAT is being built by students, faculty, and Jordanian consultant engineers at the Nanotechnology Institute at the Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). During a visit to the Nanotechnology Institute on October 23, 2017, HRH Crown Prince Hussein recorded a message that will be uploaded into the computer memory of JY1-SAT and will be broadcasted once it is launched. It is expected that JY1-SAT will be launched in the first quarter of 2018.

JY1-SAT is named in honour of the late King of Jordan, HM King Hussein, who was an avid amateur radio hobbyist who used the call-sign JY1.

HRH Crown Prince Hussein, the son of HM King Abdullah of Jordan and heir to the Hashemite Kingdom’s throne, is especially active in promoting economic and social opportunities for Jordanian youth through his Crown Prince Foundation (CPF). Within the CPF the Crown Prince has created the Masar Initiative that promotes space science and satellite engineering for Jordanian students who study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at Jordanian universities.

The Masar Initiative also runs an internship programme for Jordanian students to spend time at the Ames Research Centre in California, United States. The Ames Research Centre is run by the U.S. space agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and Jordanian students have learned many of the satellite manufacturing and innovation skills there that have gone into the construction of JY1-SAT.

On top of this, the Masar Initiative has plans to start nurturing the next generation of young Jordanians eager to start careers in space technology and science.

Quelle: Spacewatch