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To summaries SUPARCO and other engaged bodies in space program of Pakistan.
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Pakistani Space Program news & updates
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Dr Abdus Salam and all the wrong choices Pakistan made
Today is the 90th birthday of Dr Abdus Salam. The best way to wish him is to let freedom of religion and intellectual thought prevail in the country. PHOTO: YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT
29 Jan 2016
What does it take to be a genius?
The other day this thought struck me. Is it the environment that nurtures the genius or does nature simply endow certain individuals with a special gene? Maybe both propositions have merits of their own, but for the time being, let’s drop the latter. Let’s suppose there are no chosen ones, there are no saviours.
The idea of saviours arises when we start to believe in pseudo-science and seek miracles to solve our problems. But mind it, Aladdin’s lamp or magic wands don’t exist in the practical world. The only magic that works is the labour of hands at the end of one’s own arms and the thinking brain in one’s own head.
The third-world countries need the same magic for their socio-economic development; self-reliance, hard work and stimulating intellectual environment. Mix these ingredients and a successful society will develop. Pakistan, I regret, still misses these elements, and hence, is still far from being developed.
Today, at the 90th birthday of the first noble laureate of Pakistan, Dr Abdus Salam, it would be wise to take a look at his life and to introspect what wrong choices we made.
Salam was a genius for the world, nonetheless a discarded one in his own country. Born in a village near Jhang on January 29, 1926, he studied in an ordinary Urdu medium school that lacked furniture. He belonged to a lower-middle class family. His house had no electricity, or any other basic facilities. His circumstances were challenging, yet they never served as an excuse.
The fact that he scored the highest marks ever recorded for the matriculation examination at the age of 14 and published his first research paper at the age of 17 indicated his gifted potential. But who, at that time, could have imagined that this young prodigy would have received the most prestigious Nobel Prize in Physics for his contribution to the unification theory.
Dr Abdus Salam recieves the Nobel Prize for Physics from King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden on December 10, 1979. Photo: ahmadiyyapost.blogspot.com
The list of awards and honours which he received and his contribution to Pakistan need a separate volume. Some of his services, for instance, include working as the science advisor for President Ayub Khan to lay the infrastructure of science in Pakistan. He persuaded him to acquire Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP) – the first commercial nuclear reactor of Pakistan. He served as a founding director of Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), worked for the establishment of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) and The Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (PINSTECH). Not to mention that he mentored the scientist who designed the atomic bomb for Pakistan.
Not only was his unification theory a touchstone of modern physics, he also laid the pioneering work for the discovery of Higgs boson (referred to as the God-particle) in 2012 which happens to be the most important discovery in Physics in the last four decades. This discovery took place at the Large Hadron Collider established at CERN, a European organisation for nuclear research.
Last year on July 31st, Pakistan became the first non-European country to become an associate member of CERN. In his recent visit to CERN, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hailed the contribution of Pakistani scientists, and also paid tribute to Salam calling him the pride of the country.
This statement, however, couldn’t wash out the stain of guilt that the subsequent governments of Pakistan and the entire nation still carry. While the entire world applauded him, Salam was never regarded as a hero in his own country. He’s considered the opposite – a traitor.
What we did to Salam is shameful to say the least. When he returned to Pakistan after receiving the Nobel Prize, no one received him at the airport. Right wing propaganda concocted conspiracy theories to accuse him of nuclear espionage. When he was invited to Quaid-e-Azam University for his lecture, he was threatened by the fundamentalist students. Ziaul Haq refused to endorse the candidature of Salam as a Director General of UNESCO even though Salam visited nearly 30 countries in 1987 and gained their support. In 1988, the then Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, refused to meet him after making him wait for two days in a hotel. Similarly, Nawaz Sharif, in his first term of premiership, conveniently ignored Salam while mentioning the distinguished alumni of Government College, Lahore while addressing its convocation. Had Salam given up his Pakistani nationality, he would have easily avoided such humiliations, but he remained a Pakistani national until his last breath.
Salam’s biggest failure was not some personal tragedy – a person of his stature with generosity of spirit could forgive personal sufferings. His agony was due to a far bigger tragedy. Salam dreamt of establishing an international research centre in Pakistan for third-world physicists. He wanted to stop the brain-drain, but no government showed interest. He ended up setting up the International Centre for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy that was later renamed the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics.
All of this took a toll on him, and in last years of his life, he became the victim of a neurological disorder and was confined to a wheelchair. He died in Oxford, England on November 21, 1996. He was buried in Pakistan on his request. No government official attended his funeral. His misery didn’t end with his death. The epitaph of his tombstone was defaced as a final disgrace to remove the word ‘Muslim’from it.
Defaced tombstone on Dr Abdus Salam’s grave. Photo: Aziz Bilal
If we look back in history, the Mongols invaded Baghdad and demolished Baitul Hikmah, a centre of excellence during the Islamic Golden Age. Ibn-e-Rushd was exiled and his books were burnt. When Europe found the light to get out of the Dark Ages, the Muslim world lost its way. And now the country where Salam was banned from delivering his lectures in universities is witnessing terrorism in those very educational institutes.
I again seek your attention towards the dilemma that I mentioned in the start: What does it take to be a genius in any society?
There are no chosen ones, there are no saviours.
For socio-economic development, self-reliance, hard work and a stimulating intellectual environment is required. Where there is no such environment, there are no scholars, there are no intellectuals and there are no heroes. Even if someone, like Salam, somehow manages to prove his talent, he would not be treated as a hero. He would be shunned.
Today is the 90th birthday of Dr Abdus Salam. The best way to wish him is to let freedom of religion and intellectual thought prevail in the country.
Today is the 90th birthday of Dr Abdus Salam. The best way to wish him is to let freedom of religion and intellectual thought prevail in the country. PHOTO: YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT
29 Jan 2016
What does it take to be a genius?
The other day this thought struck me. Is it the environment that nurtures the genius or does nature simply endow certain individuals with a special gene? Maybe both propositions have merits of their own, but for the time being, let’s drop the latter. Let’s suppose there are no chosen ones, there are no saviours.
The idea of saviours arises when we start to believe in pseudo-science and seek miracles to solve our problems. But mind it, Aladdin’s lamp or magic wands don’t exist in the practical world. The only magic that works is the labour of hands at the end of one’s own arms and the thinking brain in one’s own head.
The third-world countries need the same magic for their socio-economic development; self-reliance, hard work and stimulating intellectual environment. Mix these ingredients and a successful society will develop. Pakistan, I regret, still misses these elements, and hence, is still far from being developed.
Today, at the 90th birthday of the first noble laureate of Pakistan, Dr Abdus Salam, it would be wise to take a look at his life and to introspect what wrong choices we made.
Salam was a genius for the world, nonetheless a discarded one in his own country. Born in a village near Jhang on January 29, 1926, he studied in an ordinary Urdu medium school that lacked furniture. He belonged to a lower-middle class family. His house had no electricity, or any other basic facilities. His circumstances were challenging, yet they never served as an excuse.
The fact that he scored the highest marks ever recorded for the matriculation examination at the age of 14 and published his first research paper at the age of 17 indicated his gifted potential. But who, at that time, could have imagined that this young prodigy would have received the most prestigious Nobel Prize in Physics for his contribution to the unification theory.
Dr Abdus Salam recieves the Nobel Prize for Physics from King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden on December 10, 1979. Photo: ahmadiyyapost.blogspot.com
The list of awards and honours which he received and his contribution to Pakistan need a separate volume. Some of his services, for instance, include working as the science advisor for President Ayub Khan to lay the infrastructure of science in Pakistan. He persuaded him to acquire Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP) – the first commercial nuclear reactor of Pakistan. He served as a founding director of Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), worked for the establishment of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) and The Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (PINSTECH). Not to mention that he mentored the scientist who designed the atomic bomb for Pakistan.
Not only was his unification theory a touchstone of modern physics, he also laid the pioneering work for the discovery of Higgs boson (referred to as the God-particle) in 2012 which happens to be the most important discovery in Physics in the last four decades. This discovery took place at the Large Hadron Collider established at CERN, a European organisation for nuclear research.
Last year on July 31st, Pakistan became the first non-European country to become an associate member of CERN. In his recent visit to CERN, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hailed the contribution of Pakistani scientists, and also paid tribute to Salam calling him the pride of the country.
This statement, however, couldn’t wash out the stain of guilt that the subsequent governments of Pakistan and the entire nation still carry. While the entire world applauded him, Salam was never regarded as a hero in his own country. He’s considered the opposite – a traitor.
What we did to Salam is shameful to say the least. When he returned to Pakistan after receiving the Nobel Prize, no one received him at the airport. Right wing propaganda concocted conspiracy theories to accuse him of nuclear espionage. When he was invited to Quaid-e-Azam University for his lecture, he was threatened by the fundamentalist students. Ziaul Haq refused to endorse the candidature of Salam as a Director General of UNESCO even though Salam visited nearly 30 countries in 1987 and gained their support. In 1988, the then Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, refused to meet him after making him wait for two days in a hotel. Similarly, Nawaz Sharif, in his first term of premiership, conveniently ignored Salam while mentioning the distinguished alumni of Government College, Lahore while addressing its convocation. Had Salam given up his Pakistani nationality, he would have easily avoided such humiliations, but he remained a Pakistani national until his last breath.
Salam’s biggest failure was not some personal tragedy – a person of his stature with generosity of spirit could forgive personal sufferings. His agony was due to a far bigger tragedy. Salam dreamt of establishing an international research centre in Pakistan for third-world physicists. He wanted to stop the brain-drain, but no government showed interest. He ended up setting up the International Centre for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy that was later renamed the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics.
All of this took a toll on him, and in last years of his life, he became the victim of a neurological disorder and was confined to a wheelchair. He died in Oxford, England on November 21, 1996. He was buried in Pakistan on his request. No government official attended his funeral. His misery didn’t end with his death. The epitaph of his tombstone was defaced as a final disgrace to remove the word ‘Muslim’from it.
Defaced tombstone on Dr Abdus Salam’s grave. Photo: Aziz Bilal
If we look back in history, the Mongols invaded Baghdad and demolished Baitul Hikmah, a centre of excellence during the Islamic Golden Age. Ibn-e-Rushd was exiled and his books were burnt. When Europe found the light to get out of the Dark Ages, the Muslim world lost its way. And now the country where Salam was banned from delivering his lectures in universities is witnessing terrorism in those very educational institutes.
I again seek your attention towards the dilemma that I mentioned in the start: What does it take to be a genius in any society?
There are no chosen ones, there are no saviours.
For socio-economic development, self-reliance, hard work and a stimulating intellectual environment is required. Where there is no such environment, there are no scholars, there are no intellectuals and there are no heroes. Even if someone, like Salam, somehow manages to prove his talent, he would not be treated as a hero. He would be shunned.
Today is the 90th birthday of Dr Abdus Salam. The best way to wish him is to let freedom of religion and intellectual thought prevail in the country.
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Pakistani Space Vision 2040.
Pakistani space agency Space and UPper Atmosphere Research COmmission(SUPARCO) has adopted a long term satellite development program for year 2040 and wants to have 5 Geostationary Satellites by 2040.
Program was started 2011 with launch of PakSat 1R manufactured by Suparco with the help of China and Indonesia to replace old PakSat 1E.
Later, more GEO Satellites Planned are
PakSat-MM1
PakSat-MM2
PakSat-II
Moreover, 6 Remote Sensing Satellites
PRSS-O1
PRSS-S1
PRSS-O2
PRSS-S2
PRSS-O3
PRSS-S3
are also planned under the program.
There are currently no plans for a Reusable Space Vehicle or rocket booster but a SLV named Taimur capable of lifting around 80kg to LEO is said to be under development.
Pakistan's National Defence Complex(NDC) is known to be developing this SLV since 2001.
It is currently known to be housed at MTFR Jhelum near the Tilla Satellite Launch Centre.
@Neo @Dazzler
Pakistani space agency Space and UPper Atmosphere Research COmmission(SUPARCO) has adopted a long term satellite development program for year 2040 and wants to have 5 Geostationary Satellites by 2040.
Program was started 2011 with launch of PakSat 1R manufactured by Suparco with the help of China and Indonesia to replace old PakSat 1E.
Later, more GEO Satellites Planned are
PakSat-MM1
PakSat-MM2
PakSat-II
Moreover, 6 Remote Sensing Satellites
PRSS-O1
PRSS-S1
PRSS-O2
PRSS-S2
PRSS-O3
PRSS-S3
are also planned under the program.
There are currently no plans for a Reusable Space Vehicle or rocket booster but a SLV named Taimur capable of lifting around 80kg to LEO is said to be under development.
Pakistan's National Defence Complex(NDC) is known to be developing this SLV since 2001.
It is currently known to be housed at MTFR Jhelum near the Tilla Satellite Launch Centre.
@Neo @Dazzler
sorcerer
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A bit of SUPRACO history from pakistan media
Lagging behind: 2040 - Pakistan’s space od[d]yssey
KARACHI:
Fifty years ago, Pakistan’s only Nobel laureate Dr Abdus Salam conceived the idea of the country’s first space research programme and national space agency in 1961.
But today, the only achievement that Pakistan can boast of is the successful launch of its first fully functional communication satellite, the Paksat-1R, whose first anniversary comes this August.
This satellite, however, was not indigenously built. China was behind Paksat-1R’s design, built, launch and even funding; only a few components were built by our engineers.
India, on the other hand, has been able to launch around 60 satellites to date in spite of launching its space programme eight years after Pakistan. It has even managed to launch its own unmanned lunar probe, the Chandrayaan-1, into orbit in 2008.
So where did we go so wrong in our space programme?
One of the main differences between India and Pakistan’s space agencies is that while one is headed by scientists, the other is currently headed by retired army generals, and has been for the last 11 years.
The space agency of Pakistan too initially was headed by scientists and many prominent names had a significant role. The last civilian scientist to have headed the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) was Dr Abdul Majid, who planned the Paksat communication satellite system and satellite launch vehicle projects.
On his retirement in April 2001, Majid handed over charge to Major General (retd) Raza Hussain, whose tenure lasted till August, 2010.
Since then the Suparco fort is being held by Major General (retd) Ahmed Bilal.
On the other hand, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has throughout its history been manned by scientists. Between 2001 and now, India has managed to launch more than 30 satellites. Pakistan for the same period managed only two satellites, including the Paksat-1, which was an acquired dysfunctional satellite and the current full fledged communication satellite Paksat-1R launched by China in 2011.
Early years
It was on Dr Salam’s advice that a Space Sciences Research Wing of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) was established. Later, this wing became known as the Suparco in 1964.
To understand the significance of Salam’s forward thinking, who was then the scientific advisor to President Ayub, one has to take into account the fact that the world’s first satellite Sputnik-1 was launched just recently in 1957 by Russia and the US was yet to plant its first man on the moon.
Salam held a meeting with two PAEC scientists Dr Salim Mehmud and Tariq Mustafa, who were studying abroad in 1960 in Washington, and revealed that the Pakistan government had approved a classified mission to begin its own space research programme. He advised the two young scientists to join NASA to study rocket science.
NASA, during those years, was in a race to put an American on the moon. In this connection, they invited Pakistan along with other countries to participate in their project. NASA provided the two scientists with rocket components to take back home along with training and support on the condition that their findings would be shared.
It was in this connection that the Rahber series of rockets were launched from Sonmiani Rocket Range in June, 1962 that conducted experiments on the Earth’s atmosphere at a height of 130 kilometers. Later, the Shahper series was also launched that conducted experiments at a height of 150kms above the surface of earth.
Also, in the 60s, a Doppler radar tracking station was established in the country as part of a global network.
New facilities and labs were set up that received Spanish beacon satellites, and feeds from an application satellite that had been relocated in 1975 by Nasa over the Indian ocean for one year.
In 1973, American Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene A Cernan (Commander), Ronald E Evans (Command Module Pilot) and Harrison H Schmitt (Lunar Module Pilot) visited Karachi amid great fanfare. It was also during the 1970s that the Islamabad Ionospheric Station within Quaid-e-Azam University was set up and the NASA Landsat ground station was established near Rawat.
Everything, it seemed, was moving in the right direction.
Suparco under Zia
After General Ziaul Haq usurped power, he promulgated the Suparco Ordinance No. XX of 1981, which granted the body autonomous status.
During the same period, a communication satellite project called Paksat was initiated.
Also, a 10-meter diameter satellite ground station for interception of satellite transmissions was set up in 1983 that was mainly designed against India.
A leading scientist told The Express Tribune that back then, the idea was to launch a satellite that could stage a ‘cultural counter attack’ on India with the influx of new Pakistani TV channels.
But when Gen Zia visited the Suparco headquarters in 1984, he announced an abrupt end to the Paksat project citing a lack of funds. It was during this period that many scientists associated with Suparco left the organisation. Funds were frozen, and there was a complete lack of innovation.
Satellite mystery
Some scientists, however, refused to quit and carried on. It was during this period that two ground stations in Karachi and Lahore were set up in 1986 in preparation for the launch of Badr-1, which was an experimental low earth orbiting satellite.
It was eventually launched on 16 July 1990 from China using the Long March 2E launcher and completed its designed life for around 35 days.
The country’s second satellite Badr-B was then launched after much delay on 10 Dec 2001 from the Baikonour Cosmodrome, Kazakistan.
An insider within Suparco says that to this day no one knows what exactly happened to the satellite when contact was lost with it. The cause was never fully investigated.
Expired orbital slots
When Pakistan failed to launch its Paksat satellites, the two orbital slots 38 E longitude and 41 E longitude acquired for it in the Geo Synchronous Orbit expired in 1994.
A new application for the allocation of five GSo slots (38E, 41E, 30E, 88E and 101E) was filed. Although granted, Pakistan faced the risk of losing its priority 38 E slot, if it didn’t launch its own satellite by April 2003.
Paksat-I
In December 2002, Pakistan acquired a satellite from the American satellite-building firm Hughes Global Systems (HGS) at a cost of around five million dollars.
HGS had designed a satellite for Indonesia, but after a battery problem occurred making it useless during certain hours of the day, it was sold to Pakistan as Paksat-1.
Later, General Pervez Musharraf would claim that “Pakistan’s space programme is now ahead of India after the formal launching of Paksat-I and this is due to the hard work of our scientists.”
2040 vision
Suparco chairman Maj Gen (retd) Ahmed Bilal, in an interview with The Express Tribune, said that Pakistani scientists were ‘on a learning curve’ which was why they chose to ‘fast forward’ their expertise with the help of the Chinese for Paksat-1R.
He clarified that China had given a soft loan for Paksat-1R, whereas all the cost of the ground control facilities within Pakistan were borne by the government of Pakistan.
Bilal remained vague on Suparco’s history, saying, “Yes, mistakes were made in the past, but we have to move ahead.”
When asked about the Vision 2040 programme that was approved by the ousted prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in January 2012, he said: “we should be able to make, produce and launch our own satellite [in the future]. That is our hallmark [sic].”
He said the Paksat-1R has a life span of 15 years and his suggestion was to have another communication satellite in space by 2021.
“National demands will dictate the number of satellites the country needs,” he said.
He said that Pakistan should have at least three remote sensing satellites that should be launched every three years.
“We will be focusing on different types of remote sensing satellites and their applications in the next seven-eight years.”
But if Suparco’s vision for 2040 is limited to building and launching our own satellite, one wonders how far ahead the rest of the world will be in the space race by then.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 1st, 2012.
Lagging behind: 2040 - Pakistan’s space od[d]yssey
KARACHI:
Fifty years ago, Pakistan’s only Nobel laureate Dr Abdus Salam conceived the idea of the country’s first space research programme and national space agency in 1961.
But today, the only achievement that Pakistan can boast of is the successful launch of its first fully functional communication satellite, the Paksat-1R, whose first anniversary comes this August.
This satellite, however, was not indigenously built. China was behind Paksat-1R’s design, built, launch and even funding; only a few components were built by our engineers.
India, on the other hand, has been able to launch around 60 satellites to date in spite of launching its space programme eight years after Pakistan. It has even managed to launch its own unmanned lunar probe, the Chandrayaan-1, into orbit in 2008.
So where did we go so wrong in our space programme?
One of the main differences between India and Pakistan’s space agencies is that while one is headed by scientists, the other is currently headed by retired army generals, and has been for the last 11 years.
The space agency of Pakistan too initially was headed by scientists and many prominent names had a significant role. The last civilian scientist to have headed the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) was Dr Abdul Majid, who planned the Paksat communication satellite system and satellite launch vehicle projects.
On his retirement in April 2001, Majid handed over charge to Major General (retd) Raza Hussain, whose tenure lasted till August, 2010.
Since then the Suparco fort is being held by Major General (retd) Ahmed Bilal.
On the other hand, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has throughout its history been manned by scientists. Between 2001 and now, India has managed to launch more than 30 satellites. Pakistan for the same period managed only two satellites, including the Paksat-1, which was an acquired dysfunctional satellite and the current full fledged communication satellite Paksat-1R launched by China in 2011.
Early years
It was on Dr Salam’s advice that a Space Sciences Research Wing of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) was established. Later, this wing became known as the Suparco in 1964.
To understand the significance of Salam’s forward thinking, who was then the scientific advisor to President Ayub, one has to take into account the fact that the world’s first satellite Sputnik-1 was launched just recently in 1957 by Russia and the US was yet to plant its first man on the moon.
Salam held a meeting with two PAEC scientists Dr Salim Mehmud and Tariq Mustafa, who were studying abroad in 1960 in Washington, and revealed that the Pakistan government had approved a classified mission to begin its own space research programme. He advised the two young scientists to join NASA to study rocket science.
NASA, during those years, was in a race to put an American on the moon. In this connection, they invited Pakistan along with other countries to participate in their project. NASA provided the two scientists with rocket components to take back home along with training and support on the condition that their findings would be shared.
It was in this connection that the Rahber series of rockets were launched from Sonmiani Rocket Range in June, 1962 that conducted experiments on the Earth’s atmosphere at a height of 130 kilometers. Later, the Shahper series was also launched that conducted experiments at a height of 150kms above the surface of earth.
Also, in the 60s, a Doppler radar tracking station was established in the country as part of a global network.
New facilities and labs were set up that received Spanish beacon satellites, and feeds from an application satellite that had been relocated in 1975 by Nasa over the Indian ocean for one year.
In 1973, American Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene A Cernan (Commander), Ronald E Evans (Command Module Pilot) and Harrison H Schmitt (Lunar Module Pilot) visited Karachi amid great fanfare. It was also during the 1970s that the Islamabad Ionospheric Station within Quaid-e-Azam University was set up and the NASA Landsat ground station was established near Rawat.
Everything, it seemed, was moving in the right direction.
Suparco under Zia
After General Ziaul Haq usurped power, he promulgated the Suparco Ordinance No. XX of 1981, which granted the body autonomous status.
During the same period, a communication satellite project called Paksat was initiated.
Also, a 10-meter diameter satellite ground station for interception of satellite transmissions was set up in 1983 that was mainly designed against India.
A leading scientist told The Express Tribune that back then, the idea was to launch a satellite that could stage a ‘cultural counter attack’ on India with the influx of new Pakistani TV channels.
But when Gen Zia visited the Suparco headquarters in 1984, he announced an abrupt end to the Paksat project citing a lack of funds. It was during this period that many scientists associated with Suparco left the organisation. Funds were frozen, and there was a complete lack of innovation.
Satellite mystery
Some scientists, however, refused to quit and carried on. It was during this period that two ground stations in Karachi and Lahore were set up in 1986 in preparation for the launch of Badr-1, which was an experimental low earth orbiting satellite.
It was eventually launched on 16 July 1990 from China using the Long March 2E launcher and completed its designed life for around 35 days.
The country’s second satellite Badr-B was then launched after much delay on 10 Dec 2001 from the Baikonour Cosmodrome, Kazakistan.
An insider within Suparco says that to this day no one knows what exactly happened to the satellite when contact was lost with it. The cause was never fully investigated.
Expired orbital slots
When Pakistan failed to launch its Paksat satellites, the two orbital slots 38 E longitude and 41 E longitude acquired for it in the Geo Synchronous Orbit expired in 1994.
A new application for the allocation of five GSo slots (38E, 41E, 30E, 88E and 101E) was filed. Although granted, Pakistan faced the risk of losing its priority 38 E slot, if it didn’t launch its own satellite by April 2003.
Paksat-I
In December 2002, Pakistan acquired a satellite from the American satellite-building firm Hughes Global Systems (HGS) at a cost of around five million dollars.
HGS had designed a satellite for Indonesia, but after a battery problem occurred making it useless during certain hours of the day, it was sold to Pakistan as Paksat-1.
Later, General Pervez Musharraf would claim that “Pakistan’s space programme is now ahead of India after the formal launching of Paksat-I and this is due to the hard work of our scientists.”
2040 vision
Suparco chairman Maj Gen (retd) Ahmed Bilal, in an interview with The Express Tribune, said that Pakistani scientists were ‘on a learning curve’ which was why they chose to ‘fast forward’ their expertise with the help of the Chinese for Paksat-1R.
He clarified that China had given a soft loan for Paksat-1R, whereas all the cost of the ground control facilities within Pakistan were borne by the government of Pakistan.
Bilal remained vague on Suparco’s history, saying, “Yes, mistakes were made in the past, but we have to move ahead.”
When asked about the Vision 2040 programme that was approved by the ousted prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in January 2012, he said: “we should be able to make, produce and launch our own satellite [in the future]. That is our hallmark [sic].”
He said the Paksat-1R has a life span of 15 years and his suggestion was to have another communication satellite in space by 2021.
“National demands will dictate the number of satellites the country needs,” he said.
He said that Pakistan should have at least three remote sensing satellites that should be launched every three years.
“We will be focusing on different types of remote sensing satellites and their applications in the next seven-eight years.”
But if Suparco’s vision for 2040 is limited to building and launching our own satellite, one wonders how far ahead the rest of the world will be in the space race by then.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 1st, 2012.
Illusive
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There's no way this thread will cross 10 pages without some trolling cause there's hardly anything worthy to cover SUPARCO, nice name though :biggrin2:
Illusive
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There is no race for India, China Japan etc. What we are seeing is natural evolution and growth of the industry. To have an efficient and sustainable space programmes, you need good institutions and funding.No, This thread could cross 10 pages in 50-70 years.
I'm daily getting lots of News about NASA, ROSCOSMOS, CNSA, ISRO, JaXA and ESA.
I could post only a little part them here because they are so much.
Inverse about pakis.
Most funny thing is that they will be at a stage in 2040 where India was around 80s.
Well, if watch the "balance" at that time, India will have become developed country meanwhile they will again be seen begging from others.
:biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2:
Some pakis in comment section are more hilarious than this article. :grin:
They have got a lot of obsession with India.
Saying, India wins the race, India shakes strategic stability :blah::blah:
Meanwhile India didn't start any program to race with them. We started it on 70s to match with China and Japan.
They have got a strong delusion that our whole strategy revolves around them.
Don't they?
In pakistan most of their limited funding goes to making nukes and maintaining them thanks to their army. Also their national psyche has never been of being self sufficient but rather being dependent/subservient to other countries and donations. They neither have the institutions to be able to sustain their space programme. This is a country that doesn't accepts failure even if its blatantly visible, they like to live in their comfort zone of lies. Science doesn't thrive in such place.
sorcerer
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Taimur whatever!~!@Illusive
Anyway, next update will come in late 2016(if they really have that rocket named Taimur) or in 2018 when China will be launching their satellite.
http://www.b14643.de/Spacerockets_1/Rest_World/Taimur_SLV/Description/Text.htm
@mod : is there some way I can BLING BLING the text? Want to bling bling the COPY and EXPORT missile part so bad..
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sorcerer
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PAKSAT 1E
Paksat-1,[1] (Other former designation as Palapa C1, HGS-3 and Anatolia 1), is a geosynchronous and communications satellite built and owned by the Boeing Company, leased to the SUPARCO as PakSat. It was successfully put on orbit on 31 January 1996 as "Palapa C1" for Indonesia as its original customer. But, after the technical problems, the satellite was leased to SUPARCO
at an orbital location of 38° East Longitude on December 2001. The PakSat-1 offers the C and Ku band coverage in over 75 countries across Europe, Africa, Middle East, South and Central Asia. Its customers included government organizations,
Paksat-1,[1] (Other former designation as Palapa C1, HGS-3 and Anatolia 1), is a geosynchronous and communications satellite built and owned by the Boeing Company, leased to the SUPARCO as PakSat. It was successfully put on orbit on 31 January 1996 as "Palapa C1" for Indonesia as its original customer. But, after the technical problems, the satellite was leased to SUPARCO
at an orbital location of 38° East Longitude on December 2001. The PakSat-1 offers the C and Ku band coverage in over 75 countries across Europe, Africa, Middle East, South and Central Asia. Its customers included government organizations,
sorcerer
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Hey! SUPARCO Space port is in Balochistan!!!
Interesting!! Very...interesting!!
Sonmiani Spaceport
The port has facilities only for launching sounding rockets with sub-orbital payloads.
Oh!! well!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonmiani_(space_facility)
Interesting!! Very...interesting!!
Sonmiani Spaceport
The port has facilities only for launching sounding rockets with sub-orbital payloads.
Oh!! well!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonmiani_(space_facility)
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Suparco is the world's best space organization because 1) it is made in pakistan and most importantly 2) it is an islamic space organization create by allah for momeens! This should end any discussions against pakis, as '1)' is a sufficient condition for something to be the best and '2)' is a necessary condition, as this much is enough for something to be best for pakis!
First mission: 'Ghazwe -e- Chand' written in some arabian book, authored / dictated by some illiterate arab by hiring a jewish linguist.....so on and so forth......
First mission: 'Ghazwe -e- Chand' written in some arabian book, authored / dictated by some illiterate arab by hiring a jewish linguist.....so on and so forth......
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Nuvneet Kundu
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And they already reached the moon because it is on their flag.
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Forget Niel Armstrong or Buzz Aldrin.....do you know who was the first man to visit the moon one fine night according to their texts?? Make a wild guess?And they already reached the moon because it is on their flag.
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Suparco grabs Baloch land in 300 seconds.Hey! SUPARCO Space port is in Balochistan!!!
Interesting!! Very...interesting!!
Sonmiani Spaceport
The port has facilities only for launching sounding rockets with sub-orbital payloads.
Oh!! well!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonmiani_(space_facility)
Nuvneet Kundu
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I think it was some Turkish leader that claims that one of their men landed on the moon before anyone else. This kind of stupidity is why Islam needs to be eradicated from this planet. It's like a cult of a billion retarded people who were fed iodine-deficient salt by their moms. I still remember the DoorDarshan advertisements said "Iodine ki kami se dimag kamjor ho jata hai"
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Diamer-Bhasha Dam: 70-80% of land acquired, remaining to be bought soon
Diamer-Bhasha Dam. PHOTO: INP/FILE
ISLAMABAD: Around 70-80% of required land for the Diamer-Bhasha Dam has been acquired while the remaining will be purchased in one and a half month, said Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Secretary Tahir Hussain.
“The land acquisition process, which began in 2010 after signing an agreement with the landowners, was to be completed by December 31, 2013, but it was stalled due to delay in payment of compensation within the agreed time frame,” Hussain explained while briefing the sub-committee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan.
“The government could arrange only Rs10 billion out of the total cost of Rs54 billion.”
He said a new agreement was reached with the people displaced by the project in January 2015, for which a 25% increase was approved by the ministerial committee on June 22, 2015.
“Diamer is a Sunni-dominated, unsettled tribal area where sectarian incidents are taking place and no other than a Sunni government employee is appointed there,” he said.
Hussain said the G-B government had declared Diamer as a division, an officer of the rank of commissioner had been posted there to supervise the land acquisition process and a dedicated team had been constituted for the project.
“One hundred per cent of the field work for private land re-verification along with computerisation of data has been completed in a record time by 50 revenue officers. The first tranche of Rs29.33 billion has also been released,” he added.
Furthermore, in order to ensure transparency, computerised record of all land acquisition is being maintained. A contract agreement has been signed with Suparco that has verified the field data of 28 mouzas.
“Special monitoring teams have saved Rs2.7 billion due to effective measurement.”
“Progress on confidence-building measures including construction of model villages, health, education, livelihood and other development programmes was slow,” the G-B chief secretary noted, saying timely release of funds was among the impediments that needed to be removed.
Diamer-Bhasha Dam. PHOTO: INP/FILE
ISLAMABAD: Around 70-80% of required land for the Diamer-Bhasha Dam has been acquired while the remaining will be purchased in one and a half month, said Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Secretary Tahir Hussain.
“The land acquisition process, which began in 2010 after signing an agreement with the landowners, was to be completed by December 31, 2013, but it was stalled due to delay in payment of compensation within the agreed time frame,” Hussain explained while briefing the sub-committee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan.
“The government could arrange only Rs10 billion out of the total cost of Rs54 billion.”
He said a new agreement was reached with the people displaced by the project in January 2015, for which a 25% increase was approved by the ministerial committee on June 22, 2015.
“Diamer is a Sunni-dominated, unsettled tribal area where sectarian incidents are taking place and no other than a Sunni government employee is appointed there,” he said.
Hussain said the G-B government had declared Diamer as a division, an officer of the rank of commissioner had been posted there to supervise the land acquisition process and a dedicated team had been constituted for the project.
“One hundred per cent of the field work for private land re-verification along with computerisation of data has been completed in a record time by 50 revenue officers. The first tranche of Rs29.33 billion has also been released,” he added.
Furthermore, in order to ensure transparency, computerised record of all land acquisition is being maintained. A contract agreement has been signed with Suparco that has verified the field data of 28 mouzas.
“Special monitoring teams have saved Rs2.7 billion due to effective measurement.”
“Progress on confidence-building measures including construction of model villages, health, education, livelihood and other development programmes was slow,” the G-B chief secretary noted, saying timely release of funds was among the impediments that needed to be removed.
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Honored everywhere, not at his homeland, Pakistan
The first Pakistani and second Muslim Nobel laureate (1979) was the Pakistani theoretical physicist, Dr. Abdus Salam after he predicted the existence of 'god-particles'. He worked for the Pakistan's space and nuclear program but shunned by the Muslim Pakistani fundamentalists in the 1970s. But, his work got immense importance in the field of international and Pakistani scientific area and still look up as "scientific father".
He always believed to be the Muslim and saw religion as a fundamental part of his scientific work. In 1974, the Pakistan Parliament made a constitutional amendment and called 'Ahmadiyya Comunity' as non-Muslim from which he belonged to.
In Focus
Dr. Salam protested against it and left for London from Pakistan. But, he was quite unable to break the chord with Pakistan where he founded the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) and helped in establishing the Theoretical Physics Group (TPG) in the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC).
He was even a science advisor to the Government of Pakistan from 1960 to 1974, and played an influential role for the development of scientific infrastructure in his homeland, Pakistan. Recently, in 2015, the Academy of Young researchers and Scholars, Lahore has renamed its library to 'Abdus Salam Library'.
Everything became blue and black from the moment Pakistani Parliament passed the controversial bill and Dr. Salam left Pakistan in protest. But, he kept on working in the field of Science and was associated with TPG and PAEC. He also established the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste, in the North-East of Italy and served as its director until 1993.
In 1996, he died on 21st November, 1996 at the age of 70 in Oxford, England from progressive supranuclear palsy. His body was returned for the last time to Pakistan and was buried in Bahishti Maqbara, a cemetery made by Ahmadiyya Community at Rabwah, Punjab, Pakistan.
It said "First Muslim Nobel Laureate" to noble prize winner but the term "Muslim" was removed on the order of local magistrate due to the non-Muslim identity for Ahmadiyya Community. After his death also, he did not get his due of being religiously devoted as a Muslim in which he always believed in and had to leave his own country half-heartedly.
The first Pakistani and second Muslim Nobel laureate (1979) was the Pakistani theoretical physicist, Dr. Abdus Salam after he predicted the existence of 'god-particles'. He worked for the Pakistan's space and nuclear program but shunned by the Muslim Pakistani fundamentalists in the 1970s. But, his work got immense importance in the field of international and Pakistani scientific area and still look up as "scientific father".
He always believed to be the Muslim and saw religion as a fundamental part of his scientific work. In 1974, the Pakistan Parliament made a constitutional amendment and called 'Ahmadiyya Comunity' as non-Muslim from which he belonged to.
In Focus
Dr. Salam protested against it and left for London from Pakistan. But, he was quite unable to break the chord with Pakistan where he founded the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) and helped in establishing the Theoretical Physics Group (TPG) in the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC).
He was even a science advisor to the Government of Pakistan from 1960 to 1974, and played an influential role for the development of scientific infrastructure in his homeland, Pakistan. Recently, in 2015, the Academy of Young researchers and Scholars, Lahore has renamed its library to 'Abdus Salam Library'.
Everything became blue and black from the moment Pakistani Parliament passed the controversial bill and Dr. Salam left Pakistan in protest. But, he kept on working in the field of Science and was associated with TPG and PAEC. He also established the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste, in the North-East of Italy and served as its director until 1993.
In 1996, he died on 21st November, 1996 at the age of 70 in Oxford, England from progressive supranuclear palsy. His body was returned for the last time to Pakistan and was buried in Bahishti Maqbara, a cemetery made by Ahmadiyya Community at Rabwah, Punjab, Pakistan.
It said "First Muslim Nobel Laureate" to noble prize winner but the term "Muslim" was removed on the order of local magistrate due to the non-Muslim identity for Ahmadiyya Community. After his death also, he did not get his due of being religiously devoted as a Muslim in which he always believed in and had to leave his own country half-heartedly.
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PM Nawaz approves launch of ‘Green Pakistan’
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday approved the launch of “Green Pakistan Programme” to improve forestry and wildlife sectors in Pakistan.
Protection and management of wildlife and reclaiming and developing forest areas are the main aspects of the programme.
According to a press release, Ministry of Climate Change has consulted the federating prior to development of the roadmap.
The prime minister has directed Ministry of Climate Change to develop a proposal for strengthening Zoological Survey of Pakistan to immediately undertake inventory of endangered wildlife species and habitats across Pakistan.
He also issued directions for revival and management of internationally recognized wildlife habitats including Khunjrab National Park (GB), Khirthar National Park (Sindh), Hingol National Park (Baluchistan), Chitral Gol National Park (KPK), Lal Suhanara National Park and Salt Range area (Punjab), Machiara National Park (AJK) and Margalla Hills National Park (ICT). The institutional and administrative steps for protection of habitat and inventory for endangered wildlife species will help a great deal to achieve the desired goals.
Ministries of Climate Change and Science & Technology will lead the regular stock-take of deforestation and forest degradation on periodic basis for producing “Report on State of Forestry in Pakistan”. GIS laboratory in Punjab and Forest Inventory in KP Environment will help in maintaining the report while SUPARCO will extend technical support in the form of provision of images.
The prime minister will lead the Green Pakistan Programme on the pattern of “Great Green Wall Programme” of China which will target to add 100 million new plants over next five years all over the country.
This includes one thousand Avenue Miles of Canal Side & Roadside Plantations in Punjab, KPK and Sindh, plantations at Changa Manga, Darphar, Bahawalpur and Chichawatni.
Mangroves forests in Karachi and Badin along with hill forests of Khirthar Range in Sindh, Juniper forests of Ziarat and Chilghoza forest in Suleiman Ranges of Baluchistan and areas in GB, AJK, Muree, Hazara, Kotli Sattian, Malakand, FATA (Orakzai, North Waziristan, are some of the locations for the plantations.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday approved the launch of “Green Pakistan Programme” to improve forestry and wildlife sectors in Pakistan.
Protection and management of wildlife and reclaiming and developing forest areas are the main aspects of the programme.
According to a press release, Ministry of Climate Change has consulted the federating prior to development of the roadmap.
The prime minister has directed Ministry of Climate Change to develop a proposal for strengthening Zoological Survey of Pakistan to immediately undertake inventory of endangered wildlife species and habitats across Pakistan.
He also issued directions for revival and management of internationally recognized wildlife habitats including Khunjrab National Park (GB), Khirthar National Park (Sindh), Hingol National Park (Baluchistan), Chitral Gol National Park (KPK), Lal Suhanara National Park and Salt Range area (Punjab), Machiara National Park (AJK) and Margalla Hills National Park (ICT). The institutional and administrative steps for protection of habitat and inventory for endangered wildlife species will help a great deal to achieve the desired goals.
Ministries of Climate Change and Science & Technology will lead the regular stock-take of deforestation and forest degradation on periodic basis for producing “Report on State of Forestry in Pakistan”. GIS laboratory in Punjab and Forest Inventory in KP Environment will help in maintaining the report while SUPARCO will extend technical support in the form of provision of images.
The prime minister will lead the Green Pakistan Programme on the pattern of “Great Green Wall Programme” of China which will target to add 100 million new plants over next five years all over the country.
This includes one thousand Avenue Miles of Canal Side & Roadside Plantations in Punjab, KPK and Sindh, plantations at Changa Manga, Darphar, Bahawalpur and Chichawatni.
Mangroves forests in Karachi and Badin along with hill forests of Khirthar Range in Sindh, Juniper forests of Ziarat and Chilghoza forest in Suleiman Ranges of Baluchistan and areas in GB, AJK, Muree, Hazara, Kotli Sattian, Malakand, FATA (Orakzai, North Waziristan, are some of the locations for the plantations.
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Pakistan All set to Launch Indigenous State of Art Satellite into Space: Officials
Photo source: www.brahmand.com
Islamabad:Pakistan has finalized to send another indigenous state of the art satellite into space to make stronger its position in space technology and a sum of Rs. 7.5 billion has been owed in the budget 2016-2017 for this program.
Pakistan is expected to be able to send the new satellite in space by late 2017. The head base of this satellite program to be set up in Punjab’s capital city Lahore while the Sub-Offices will be Functioned in Karachi, Sui, and Muzaffarabad. Work will also take off for the development of satellite station under Pakistan’s Space research commission SUPARCO. According to officials, the new project will get function in this financial year 2016-17.
The Pakistan’s neighboring countries, China, and India have left Pakistan far behind in quantity of satellites launched by them and they are taking enormous economic & defense payback from them. On the other side, Pakistan had sent only one satellite into space earlier. The induction of the new satellite will guide in the new uprising in the field of communication in Pakistan, besides bolstering country’s probability for satellite monitoring & achieving defense and Military targets. This program will also assist in ensuring a reasonable distribution of water among five provinces under 1991 water distribution accord.
Photo source: www.brahmand.com
Islamabad:Pakistan has finalized to send another indigenous state of the art satellite into space to make stronger its position in space technology and a sum of Rs. 7.5 billion has been owed in the budget 2016-2017 for this program.
Pakistan is expected to be able to send the new satellite in space by late 2017. The head base of this satellite program to be set up in Punjab’s capital city Lahore while the Sub-Offices will be Functioned in Karachi, Sui, and Muzaffarabad. Work will also take off for the development of satellite station under Pakistan’s Space research commission SUPARCO. According to officials, the new project will get function in this financial year 2016-17.
The Pakistan’s neighboring countries, China, and India have left Pakistan far behind in quantity of satellites launched by them and they are taking enormous economic & defense payback from them. On the other side, Pakistan had sent only one satellite into space earlier. The induction of the new satellite will guide in the new uprising in the field of communication in Pakistan, besides bolstering country’s probability for satellite monitoring & achieving defense and Military targets. This program will also assist in ensuring a reasonable distribution of water among five provinces under 1991 water distribution accord.
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Pakistan's TV channels go dark, why?
LAHORE (Staff Report) – Many of Pakistan’s television channels including state-run PTV faced a complete blackout on Tuesday after an error with satellite network.
The TV channels including PTV, Capital TV, Dawn News, Channel 24, 92 News, Ab Tak, Apna, Channel 5, Waqt News, Neo Network, Dunya TV and others went ddark for over an hour due to the error with PakSat-1R.
However the transmission was restored after the glitch was removed.
PakSat-1R (or PakSat-1 Replacement) is an advanced geosynchronous and communications satellite that is manufactured and operated by the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), an executive space authority of the government of Pakistan.
PAKSAT-1R was launched on 11 August 2011 aboard China’s Long March 3B (CZ-3B) Satellite Launch Vehicle from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in China’s Sichuan Province.
The satellite has a design life of 15 years with initial goals to provide broadband internet access, digital television broadcasting, remote and rural telephony, emergency communications, tele-education and tele-medicine services across South and Central Asia, Eastern Europe, East Africa and the Far East.
LAHORE (Staff Report) – Many of Pakistan’s television channels including state-run PTV faced a complete blackout on Tuesday after an error with satellite network.
The TV channels including PTV, Capital TV, Dawn News, Channel 24, 92 News, Ab Tak, Apna, Channel 5, Waqt News, Neo Network, Dunya TV and others went ddark for over an hour due to the error with PakSat-1R.
However the transmission was restored after the glitch was removed.
PakSat-1R (or PakSat-1 Replacement) is an advanced geosynchronous and communications satellite that is manufactured and operated by the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), an executive space authority of the government of Pakistan.
PAKSAT-1R was launched on 11 August 2011 aboard China’s Long March 3B (CZ-3B) Satellite Launch Vehicle from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in China’s Sichuan Province.
The satellite has a design life of 15 years with initial goals to provide broadband internet access, digital television broadcasting, remote and rural telephony, emergency communications, tele-education and tele-medicine services across South and Central Asia, Eastern Europe, East Africa and the Far East.
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Pakistan opts out of SAARC satellite plan
At the SAARC summit in Kathmandu, Modi had announced India’s decision to develop the satellite to benefit all member countries in different fields including telecommunication and telemedicine.
BY: EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE | NEW DELHI |PUBLISHED ON:MARCH 23, 2016 4:03 AM
Pakistan has “decided to opt out” of the ambitious SAARC satellite project which was proposed in November 2014 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for all member countries of the regional grouping.
At the SAARC summit in Kathmandu, Modi had announced India’s decision to develop the satellite to benefit all member countries in different fields including telecommunication and telemedicine.
Related
- SAARC warmth, some Pak chill
- Leaders to push Sharif to sign 3 pacts
- SAARC summit: MEA rules out any Modi-Sharif meeting in Nepal
On Tuesday, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said: “Pakistan has decided to opt out of the satellite project. So it cannot be called a SAARC satellite. It will be a South Asia satellite.”
Pakistan is learnt to have expressed reservations over the safety of its space programme data. This was conveyed to India during the SAARC meeting in Pokhara this month.
@Navnit Kundu @Gessler @Illusive @sorcerer @Superdefender
