VietNamNet Bridge – Made-in-Vietnam micro satellite, Pico Dragon, was shipped to the International Space Station (ISS) on August 4 to prepare for a mission in space.

The satellite is examined in Japan. (Source: Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology)

The devise is programmed to capture images of the earth, collect space environment data and test communication systems, according to the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology.

The 10x10x11.35 centimeter cube weighting nearly one kilogram is the first of its kind developed by young Vietnamese engineers and researchers of the National Satellite Centre, an affiliate of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology.

The micro satellite, together with three other micro satellites of the US, will be carried by Japan’s Kounotori 4 (HTV) cargo spacecraft.

It is planned to stay at the ISS for two to three months before going into space.

In May this year, Vietnam’s first remote sensing satellite, VNREDSat-1, was launched into orbit from the Kourou launch pad, Guiana, France.

VNREDSat-1 is capable of capturing images of all areas in the world and it is expected to assist efforts to deal with flooding, forest fire, oil overflow and other incidents.

Professor Chau Van Minh, Chairman of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, described the launching as an important scientific and technological event that opens up a new development in Vietnam’s space technology following the success of two telecommunications satellites - Vinasat 1 in 2008 and Vinasat 2 in 2012.

The satellite was designed and built by Astrium SAS, an affiliate of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS).

Source: Vietnam Plus