Türkiye launches observation satellite İMECE

Türkiye launched its first domestically produced observation satellite İMECE at Vandenberg space force base in the United States on April 15.

The satellite was designed and developed by the Space Technologies Research Institute of Türkiye's Scientific and Technological Research Council and was produced in Türkiye to provide high-resolution imagery.

The launch of İMECE was delayed three times due to bad weather. The satellite, planned to serve in space for five years, was finally launched from the space force base in California, where it was sent from Ankara's Esenboğa Airport.

"The first signal has been received, İMECE is in orbit. Now it's time to get the first high-resolution image in two weeks," Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank wrote in a social media post.

With the inauguration of İMECE, Türkiye has made history in the field of space with the electro-optical satellite camera with sub-meter resolution. The satellite will operate in orbit simultaneously with the sun at an altitude of 680 kilometers (422.5 miles), the ministry informed earlier.

The project started in January 2017, and in June 2020, the assembly integration activities of the spacecraft's thermal structural efficiency module were completed and tests for the vibration on the spacecraft started. The final assembly of the satellite done jointly by technology, defense and transportation ministries followed those tests.

İMECE will be included in the inventory of the Air Force Command after the tests in space are completed.

The outputs expected to be obtained from the project will form the building blocks of the country's future satellites, officials say, while it is also aimed to gain trained manpower and knowledge in this field.