The Rwanda Space Agency (RSA) is Rwanda's agency for aerospace research and economic development. Its responsibilities include advising the government of Rwanda on space policies, to implement those policies, to promote Rwanda's aerospace industry, and to conduct aerospace research. [1] It was established in 2021. [2]
In 2017, the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) and Rwanda's Ministry of Defense created a Space Working Group. [3] This coordinated and promoted the various aerospace projects around the country culminating in the launch of Rwanda's first satellite, RWASAT-1, in 2019 through the Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency (JAXA). [4]
Since the RSA was established, Rwanda has rapidly grown its ambitions. In October of 2021, the RSA requested orbital slots for almost 330,000 satellites. In 2022, its CEO, Col. Francis Ngabo, signed the Artemis Accords on the norms for space exploration and use of astronomical objects. [5]
Much of the RSA's activity involves earth observation. This includes greenhouse gas monitoring, disaster management, and economic and social development. [6]
Rwanda's first satellite, RWASAT-1, monitored soil moisture levels and provided data for crop yield estimates as a part of the RSA's economic development initiative. Its second, nicknamed Icyerekezo, helped provide satellite internet service to the remote Nkombo Island on Lake Kivu. [7]
In 2022, the RSA took charge of the Rwanda Climate Observatory. [8] It now monitors the emissions of six greenhouse gases.
The Brazilian Space Agency is the civilian authority in Brazil responsible for the country's space program. It operates a spaceport at Alcântara, and a rocket launch site at Barreira do Inferno. It is the largest and most prominent space agency in Latin America.
The Canadian Space Agency is the national space agency of Canada, established in 1990 by the Canadian Space Agency Act.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is the Japanese national air and space agency. Through the merger of three previously independent organizations, JAXA was formed on 1 October 2003. JAXA is responsible for research, technology development and launch of satellites into orbit, and is involved in many more advanced missions such as asteroid exploration and possible human exploration of the Moon. Its motto is One JAXA and its corporate slogan is Explore to Realize.
The Israel Space Agency is a governmental body, a part of Israel's Ministry of Science and Technology, that coordinates all Israeli space research programs with scientific and commercial goals.
The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, also known as the Chang'e Project after the Chinese Moon goddess Chang'e, is an ongoing series of robotic Moon missions by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to space exploration.
A moonbase is a human outpost on or below the surface of the Moon. More than a mere site of activity or temporary camp, moonbases are extraterrestrial bases, supporting robotic or human activity, by providing surface infrastructure. As of 2024 missions to the Moon have realized single-mission bases,, as well as some small permanent installations.
Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT), also known as Ibuki, is an Earth observation satellite and the world's first satellite dedicated to greenhouse gas monitoring. It measures the densities of carbon dioxide and methane from 56,000 locations on the Earth's atmosphere. The GOSAT was developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and launched on 23 January 2009, from the Tanegashima Space Center. Japan's Ministry of the Environment, and the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) use the data to track gases causing the greenhouse effect, and share the data with NASA and other international scientific organizations.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. Established in 1958, it succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to give the U.S. space development effort a distinct civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. It has since led most of America's space exploration programs, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968–1972 Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. Currently, NASA supports the International Space Station (ISS) along with the Commercial Crew Program, and oversees the development of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System for the lunar Artemis program.
Greenhouse gas monitoring is the direct measurement of greenhouse gas emissions and levels. There are several different methods of measuring carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, including infrared analyzing and manometry. Methane and nitrous oxide are measured by other instruments. Greenhouse gases are measured from space such as by the Orbiting Carbon Observatory and networks of ground stations such as the Integrated Carbon Observation System.
The Earth Observation Center is a Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) aeronautical research facility located in Hatoyama, Saitama, Japan. It utilizes remote sensing technologies such as satellites to study Earth's environment from outer space. The research done by this center has a substantial impact on the study of the Earth's environmental phenomena, such as global warming.
The (Japanese) Lunar Exploration Program is a program of robotic and human missions to the Moon undertaken by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and its division, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS). It is also one of the three major enterprises of the JAXA Space Exploration Center (JSPEC). The main goal of the program is "to elucidate the origin and evolution of the Moon and utilize the Moon in the future".
The Ghana Space Science and Technology Institute (GSSTI) was opened officially on 2 May 2012 as Ghana’s first space science, space exploration, astronomy and technology space agency. It is an Institution under the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission. GSSTI and Ghana Space Agency (GhSA) aim to become an arena of excellence in space science, space exploration and space technology through teaching, learning, private spaceflight and space research commercialisation. The centre and space agency will also allow scientists and astronauts to conduct research into astrophysics, remote sensing, natural resource management, weather forecasting, agriculture and national security.
The NASA Authorization Act of 2014 is a bill that would authorize the appropriation of $17.6 billion in fiscal year 2014 to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). NASA would use the funding for human exploration of space, the Space Launch System, the Orion spacecraft, the Commercial Crew Program, the International Space Station (ISS), and various technological and educational projects.
The Polish Space Agency is the space agency of Poland, administered by the Ministry of Development, Labour and Technology. It is a member of the European Space Agency. The agency is focused on developing satellite networks and space technologies in Poland. It was established on 26 September 2014, and its headquarters are located in Gdańsk, Poland.
The New Zealand Space Agency is an agency within the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) charged with "space policy, regulation and business development" relating to space activities in New Zealand.
ArmCosmos, commonly known as the Armenian Space Agency, is an Armenian private agency responsible for the development of Armenia's commercial space industry, coordinating domestic activities, identifying opportunities and facilitating international space engagement, on behalf of the Government of Armenia. Its headquarters are located in Yerevan, Armenia.
The Artemis Accords is a series of non-binding multilateral arrangements between the United States government and other world governments that elaborates on the norms expected to be followed in outer space. The accords are related to the Artemis program, an American-led effort to return humans to the Moon by 2026, with the ultimate goal of expanding space exploration to Mars and beyond.
The Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) is the national space agency of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It was founded on September 12, 2018, by Luxembourg's Economy Minister Étienne Schneider.
The history of space in Africa is the history of space activity by or sent from Africa.