SHARJAH, 23rd September, 2023 (WAM) — H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and President of the University of Sharjah (UOS), witnessed the signing of a cooperation agreement between the Sharjah Academy of Astronomy, Space Sciences & Technology (SAASST), the Department of Town Planning and Survey, the Sharjah Electricity, Water and Gas Authority (SEWA), and the Sharjah Municipality, to work on implementing the Cube Satellite project, Sharjah-Sat-2.
The agreement, with its ceremony was held at the Academy’s headquarters, was signed by: Saeed Al Suwaidi, Chairman of the Sharjah Electricity, Water and Gas Authority (SEWA); Obaid Saeed Al Teneiji, Director-General of Sharjah Municipality, Dr. Hamid Majoul Al Nuaimi, Director General of the Sharjah Academy of Astronomy, Space sciences & Technology, and Neela Al Shamsi, Director of the Support Services Department at the Department of Town Planning and Survey.
The agreement represents an effective collaboration between governmental and academic institutions affiliated with the University of Sharjah to implement projects of great importance and benefit at various scientific, environmental and urban levels. The outcome of this project will help diverse parties in making decisions, developing future plans, and conducting scientific research by making use of the accurate information provided by the Sharjah Sat-2 satellite.
The collaboration agreement is for the Sharjah-Sat-2 project, which is a cubic satellite made up of 6 cubic pieces with dimensions of 10*20*30 centimeters in length, width, and height. As with all cubic satellites, the project will include five sub-operating systems and a basic payload, in addition to the ability to add a supplementary load to accomplish multiple tasks at the same time.
The five systems in the satellite will be as follows:
1. The power system, which will be responsible for operating the satellite and will consist of solar panels and a battery stored for extra energy.
2. The communications system which is responsible for communicating with the satellite and obtaining information from it.
3. Satellite guidance and control system.
4. Data Processing System.
5. The satellite's exterior structure.
The primary payload for Sharjah-Sat 2 will be a spectral camera with a resolution of up to 5 metres.
The project will focus on providing the parties funding and sponsoring the project with the scientific data and captured photos by the camera which can be used in :
A: Urban planning, such as strategic planning, monitoring urban changes and growth, and drawing land maps.
B. The Study of the environment, such as monitoring the deterioration of fertile lands, monitoring desertification, monitoring environmental change as a result of human activity, detecting oil, gas and water leaks, and monitoring air pollution.
C. Risk Management, such as assessing and mitigating potential risks.
Instead of using ground photos, satellite images can be considered as a highly accurate and significant tool for tracking long-term and large-scale changes.
Satellites can cover vast areas, acquire high-resolution photos, and automatically transmit them to the ground.
The signing of the cooperation agreement was also attended by Dr. Khawla Abdulrahman al Mulla, Chairperson of the Family Affairs Authority in Sharjah; Khalid bin Butti Al Muhairi, Chairman of Sharjah Department of Town Planning and Survey; Dr. Mansour Mohammed bin Nassar, Head of the Legal Department of the Government of Sharjah; and Mohammed Abdullah, Chief Executive Officer of Sharjah Islamic Bank.