Sri Lanka’s first satellite ‘Raavana-1’ launched from Virginia

  • India’s southern neighbour Sri Lanka has sent its first satellite ‘Raavana-1’ into space on April 18, 2019.
  • The satellite was launched into space from NASA’s Flight Facility on Virginia’s east shore.
  • ‘Raavana 1’ weights around 1.05 kg and the lifespan of the satellite is around one and a half years.
  • The ‘Raavana 1’ launch marks Sri Lanka’s entry into the global space age.
  • The satellite was designed and built at the Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan by two Sri Lankan research engineers.
  • Its camera mission is to capture images of Sri Lanka and its neighbouring countries.
  • Nepal also launched its first satellite NepaliSat-1 into space from the US with same mission to gather detailed geographical information of the Himalayan nation, evoking unbridled excitement among the people and scientists.
  • These satellites were launched under Japan’s BIRD project of the Japanese Kyushu Institute of Technology.
  • The BIRDS project has been designed in association with the United Nations and aims at helping countries launch their first satellite.

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