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The 'Comisión Nacional de Actividades Espaciales' ('CONAE'; in English, 'National Space Activities Commission') is the civilian agency of the government of Argentina in charge of the national space program.

Contents

History

Ground infrastructure

Satellite systems

International cooperation

Launches

External links

History

CONAE is the forerunner of the 'CNIE' () founded in the 1960s. The new commission was created on May 28, 1991 during the government of Carlos Menem, after the cancellation of the military Condor missile program in an attempt to move all the commission efforts to civilian pourposes. It received the Air Force aerospace facilities in Córdoba and Buenos Aires of the former CNIE, as well as some of the civil personnel involved in the cancelled project. Since the 1990s the new commission signed agreements with NASA and European agencies and has developed a number of Earth Observation satellites, including SAC-A, the failed mission SAC-B, and the SAC-C launched in 2000 and still operating.

Ground infrastructure

CONAE's Córdoba Ground Station (ETC) has been in operation since 1997. It has capacity for data reception and TT&C. Currently, it receives data from 12 international satellites, besides the data from Argentine missions. The National Space Program foresees the setting up of a second ground station in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego Province, at the southern tip of Argentina, to enable the collection of data on the Antarctic continent.

Satellite systems

The national space program provides for two satellite series and both are devoted to Earth Observation: one with main Argentine instruments in the optical range (SAC) and the other one in the microwave range (SAOCOM).
The SAC series has been developed by the CONAE together with the Argentine company INVAP and a number of local universities, in close cooperation with the NASA. It has also included the participation of Brazil, Denmark, Italy and Germany.
Currently three Argentine satellites have been launched: SAC-B, which was devoted to scientific research; SAC-A, a technological demonstration satellite, and SAC-C, the first Earth Observation Satellite of Argentina.
In this context, CONAE has joined efforts with NASA in the creation of the First International Earth Observation Constellation, with Argentine SAC-C and the U.S. Landsat 7, EO-1 and Terra missions.
The next step in this line is SAC-D/Aquarius, planned for 2009, which will carry the NASA-provided Aquarius mission for taking measurements of sea salinity which will contribute to the better understanding of the environment, together with CONAE-provided sensors which will contribute to monitoring possible fire focuses.
On the other hand, the SAOCOM series involves the construction of two missions with an L-band full polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) as main payload, with Belgium and Italian partnership.

International cooperation

These missions will be part of the Italian-Argentine System of Satellites for Emergency Management (SIASGE), together with the Italian COSMO-SkyMed missions (see related article Orfeo Programme). Knowing the great advantages of combining the information provided by L and X Band radars and the convenience of a shorter revisit period, Argentina and Italy are joining efforts to develop this system, which will be fully devoted the provision of information to lessen the consequences of natural disasters.
CONAE has joined in July 2003 the International Disaster Charter, which aims to provide a unified system of space data acquisition and delivery to those affected by natural or man-made disasters through Authorized Users.

Launches

★ SAC-A: December 3 1998 (Space Shuttle). Conceived to test systems and as a technological model.

★ SAC-B: November 4 1996 (Pegasus rocket). The first Argentinian scientific satellite, whose main goal was the study of solar physics and astrophysics. Launching problems prevented it from been deployed in orbit. As it was still attached to the rocket, it could not extend its solar panels and was only operated while the batteries lasted.

★ SAC-C: November 21 2000 (Delta rocket). Still operational. Launched as part of the AM Constellation together with NASA's Landsat 7, TERRA and EO-1. Carries a Multispectral mid resolution sensor (MMRS), a high resolution technological camera (HRTC), a high sensitivity camera (HSTC) and the GPS Occultation and Passive reflection experiment (GOLPE). All instruments where provided by CONAE except GOLPE, which was provided by NASA.

★ SAOCOM: Under development and to be launched on 2008. Satellite that will carry a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), and will be part of a constellation of other satellites in partnership with the Italian Space Agency.

★ SAC-D: To be launched on 2009. Part of a cooperation program between CONAE and NASA (Goddard Space flight Center and JPL).

★ SAC-E: Unknown launch date. Satellite for the observation and information recollection on water and food on the Mercosur area, developed together with the Brazilian Space Agency.

★ SAC-F: No information available.

External links

★ Official website

★ International Disaster Charter

★ INVAP