02/19/2020 - 11:47
- Clarín.com
- Technology
Argentine observation satellite Saocom1B will depart this Saturday from Invap's headquarters in the Rio de Janeiro city of Bariloche to the SpaceX company facilities in Cape Canaveral for its next launch at the end of March , Casa Rosada reported through social networks.
The Saocom1B began to be assembled in 2015 and its putting into orbit will be key for agricultural production since it will allow measuring soil moisture and will warn of potential flooding , among other services, the National Space Activities Commission (Conae) reported.
This satellite, together with the Saocom 1A that was launched on October 7, 2018, make up the SAOCOM Mission, and were developed and manufactured in the country by Conae along with the Invap company , the main contractor of the project, the public firm VENG, the National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) and the GEMA Laboratory of the UNLP, among 80 other technology companies and institutions of the country's scientific and technological system. He also had the collaboration of the Italian Space Agency (ASI).
SAOCOM 1B: heading to Florida, USA (Courtesy Invap)
The transfer will begin with the departure of the satellite from the INVAP / CEATSA facilities, in San Carlos de Bariloche, in a truck convoy that will transport about 42 tons of equipment to the airport.
There they will be loaded on the Antonov AN 124 aircraft, which will take off from Argentine soil on Saturday 22 at dawn, bound for the SpaceX company facilities in Cape Canaveral, for preparations for the launch, scheduled for March 30.
August 2018: An Antonov was preparing to take the Saocom 1A satellite from Bariloche to Florida. (Marcelo Martínez)
"An important challenge for Argentina"
Laura Frulla, principal investigator of the SAOCOM Mission, stressed that "the development of the entire mission was a very important challenge for Argentina." And he explained the reasons: " We had no previous knowledge about the technology for the construction and tuning of satellites of this type," he explained. "Mastering radar observation technology is a breakthrough that gives us independence and technological sovereignty, " he added.
The SAOCOM Mission takes a complex Earth observation technology into space, which represents a significant improvement in the observation capabilities with respect to the usual optical sensors.
It is an active instrument consisting of a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), which works in the L-band microwave portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.
A key piece for agriculture. (Courtesy Invap)
SAOCOM satellites were specially designed to detect soil moisture and obtain information on the earth's surface in any weather condition or time of day. This is possible because radar microwaves are able to pass through clouds and "see" even if it is cloudy, both day and night. These characteristics make SAOCOMs especially useful for preventing, monitoring, mitigating and evaluating natural or anthropic catastrophes.
Through a collaboration agreement between INTA and Conae, the information provided by the SAOCOM Mission on soil moisture will help producers know the best time for planting, fertilization and irrigation , in crops such as soybeans, corn, wheat and sunflower.
It will also provide support in relation to the use of chemicals for disease control in crops, in particular for fusariosis in wheat. A contribution not less for the agricultural sector is the flood forecast, an activity that also contributes to the SAOCOM mission developed in the framework of cooperation between the National Water Institute (INA) and Conae.
