Kuwait eyes cooperation with China in space exploration: expert

Members of Kuwait's national satellite team are seen in the final tests of KuwaitSAT1 in Capital Governorate, Kuwait, July 18, 2022. (Xinhua)

KUWAIT CITY, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Kuwait's national satellite team looks forward to cooperating with China in space projects and scientific research, an official from the country's national satellite project said in a recent interview.

Ahmed Al-Kandri, deputy and operations manager of Kuwait's national satellite project, commended China as one of the world's leading countries in space exploration and wished to cooperate with China in the exchange of knowledge and capabilities.

After completing the final tests of kuwaitSAT1, the first Kuwaiti satellite, before its launch in November, Kuwait's national satellite team is designing KuwaitSAT2, according to Ahmed Al-Kandri.

Hala Al-Jassar, a faculty member in the Physics Department at Kuwait University and the director of the national satellite project, hailed the kuwaitSAT1 project, which costed about 300,000 Kuwaiti dinars (about 970,000 U.S. dollars), as "a milestone in the field of scientific, environmental and natural phenomena study."

kuwaitSAT1 will provide information for the study of coasts and islands through a micro-image captured by a high-quality, high-tech camera. By taking pictures of various cities and areas, the satellite will benefit engineering and environmental studies, said Al-Jassar.

The satellite camera's data and photos will be tested for three months after launch, according to Al-Jassar.