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Malaysia to launch new mapping satellite

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-13 13:46

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will launch a new mapping satellite, "RazakSAT", on Tuesday from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands in the western Pacific Ocean, local media reported on Monday.

The satellite would orbit the Near Equator Orbit at a nominal altitude of 685 kilometers, the New Straits Times newspaper reported.

The Malaysian Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry said in a statement that RazakSAT would benefit Malaysia and other countries along the equator, as it carries a high resolution camera to capture images from space for different applications, including precision farming, landscape mapping, disaster mitigation, study meteorological phenomena, and urban and road network planning.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Maximus Ongkili and other senior officials of the ministry have arrived in Guam, near Kwajalein Atoll, to witness the launch via live webcast.