Bangladesh plans own orbital slot for second satellite

The government has planned Bangladesh’s own orbital slot as it mulls over launching a second satellite after the successful placement of the first one into a rented slot.

News Deskbdnews24.com
Published : 25 May 2018, 08:25 PM
Updated : 25 May 2018, 08:40 PM

Bangabandhu-1 is moving round the Earth at 119.1 degrees east, an orbital slot rented from Moscow-based Intersputnik International Organization of Space Communication for 45 years.

The government has applied for allotment of 100 degrees east and 74 degrees east orbital slots to the International Communication Union or ITU, according to IT and Telecom Minister Mustafa Jabbar.

He says they are planning to keep one of these slots for ‘Bangabandhu-2’.

India has also applied for the 100 degrees east slot while the 76 degrees east is still unclaimed.

“We are trying to get both,” Jabbar told bdnews24.com.

The minister said the ‘Bangabandhu-2’ would cost less than the Tk 30 Bangabandhu-1 did as the ground station at Gazipur is already in operation.

Bangladesh’s first geostationary communication satellite Bangabandhu-1 reached its orbital slot 11 days after SpaceX’s most modern rocket blasted off carrying the satellite from the US early on May 12.

Bangladesh had to rent the slot after it failed to secure the two slots it has applied for.

In 2014, the country became a member of ITU’s Asia-Pacific Council for four years.

Some hoped at the time the membership would give Bangladesh some benefits in getting the two slots, but that did not happen.

Bangladesh had to find an alternative when ITU rejected its application for the 102 degrees east orbital slot as 20 other countries had applied for it long before it did.

The country failed again to secure the 69 degrees east slot due to objection by Malaysia, Singapore, and China.

Bangladesh then decided to wait no longer and rent the orbital slot from the Russian organisation at over Tk 2.18 billion.

Mohammad Mesbahuzzaman, the director of the Bangabandhu-1 project, said Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission had tried to get a suitable orbit for the satellite.

“We would not have been able to launch the satellite if we did not have 119.1 degrees east,” he said.

He said foreign experts have arrived in Bangladesh to help operate the satellite. The backup ground station in Rangamati’s Betnunia has also received signal from the satellite.

It would take three months for the satellite to go fully operational after tests, according to him.

Mesbahuzzaman said 18 young workers are manning the Gazipur ground station now and 12 others will join them soon.

All of them took training in France, where the satellite was built at Thales Alenia Space facilities.

Consultant Space Partnership International recommended appointing 105 people to operate the satellite.

Mesbahuzzaman said they would look after the matter after Bangladesh Communication Satellite Company set up to operate the satellite goes fully independent.

“We have been working for a long time. It will surely be a good company,” said the project director.