Ground stations in Gazipur and Betbunia have successfully received initial test signals from Bangabandhu-1, Bangladesh’s first communications satellite, after its successful deployment to geostationary orbit, State Minister for ICT Junaid Ahmed Palak has confirmed.
To deploy it in geostationary orbit, SpaceX separated Bangabandhu-1 from its second stage booster some 33 minutes after the launch in the early hours Saturday.
Palak told UNB over the phone from the launch site that the satellite had been successfully deployed at Bangladesh’s specified orbit slot “within 36 minutes” of the liftoff.
The test signals from the rocket were received by the ground stations in Gazipur and Betbunia after 4:25am Bangladesh time.
He said it would take another 11 days for the satellite built to purpose by European aerospace company Thales Alenia Space, to settle into its orbital slot.
Bangabandhu-1 will be operated by its makers Thales Alenia Space for the first year, even as Bangladeshis are trained to take complete control from the third year onwards. It is expected to have a lifespan of 15 years.
Palak said the prime minister’s ICT Affairs Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy and his family had enjoyed the launch with a lively Bangladeshi contingent at the Kennedy Space Center visitors area.
