satellite RazakSAT

A Malaysian paper published on 22 may 209 carried the news of the Malaysian first remote sensing satellite. It was to be launched on 12 Apr 2009 from US island of Kwajalein.

RazakSAT launch on April 21

Mar 12, 2009 ... After years of postponement, RazakSAT, Malaysia's first remote sensing satellite, will be blasted into space from Kwajalein Island on April 21.

thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/3/12/nation/...sec...

It was reported that the Science, Technology and Innovation Deputy Minister Fadilah Yusof said the satellite was to be flown from Subang to Bucholz Army Airfield, Kwajalein on March 21 by Malaysian Hercules.

RazakSAT, which is also Malaysia's second low orbit microsatellite, was developed through a colloboration of ATSB with Satrec Initiative Ltd of South Korea.

The 180kg satellite is expected to be carried into space on a Falcon One rocket owned by United States' Space Exploration Technology (SpaceX) from Kwajalein.

The 2.5mm Medium Sized Aperture Camera on the satellite is expected to provide high resolution images of Malaysia that can be applied to land management, resource development and conservation, forestry, fish migration and security.

According to Fadilah, RazakSAT, also the nation's first observatory satellite, would be launched to an orbital location specifically for Malaysia, to be known as the Equatorial Orbit.

He said the orbital location would enable observation to be made on the earth surface more often, as compared to other observatory satelites, that is, five to six times daily, during daylight.

"Compared to TiongSAT1, which was launched in 2006 and which was more experimental in nature, RazakSAT is considered a functional satellite in monitoring the earth's surface and environment," said Fadilah, adding that the satellite was built at a total cost of RM150 million.

Fadilah said for the first time, together with RazakSAT, two other satellites meant for educational purposes CubeSAT and InnoSAT would also be launched.

Meanwhile, Fadilah said Malaysia had the necessary expertise and capacity to develop its own satellite for sale to other countries.

"There is already a demand from countries like Iran to purchase satellites developed by ATSb," he added. - Bernama

Extracted from the Star.

On 25 Oct 2011, the audit report mentioned that the satellite is 37 km off target. The RM142mil RazakSAT failed to operate since it was launched.

In a test, it was supposed to target raja muda batang berjuntai forest reserve but the picture delivered deviated by 37 km. Correction was to be done by ATSB the original developer, but the subsequent check showed the same problem.

Last year, the minister for science and technology said that allocation under 10 malaysian plan for the next phase called RazakSAT2.

Malacca Monorail

The Malacca monorail had created another headline. In my opinion, it is NOT befitting to a state that self-proclaimed as a developed state, to be in the situation where the firemen had to use ladders to rescue the visiting tourist. It way carry the negative message that we are not capable of handling technology.

Smart Solution...

Mechanics are installing special ladders to enable passengers to climb down in emergency situation. Probably they do not believe that they can improve he reliability of the malacca monorail. I could imagine in the welcoming announcement, the driver will be saying.. 'ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Malacca monorail, a project to commemorate the proclamation of Malacca as a developed states well ahead of the targeted year of 2020. We assure you that this machine will take you through the intended 1.3 km journey even if we have to use our latest locally developed advance state of technology, the Malacca Retractable Ladder".

At 1,11 pm on 1 of 11 2011, the monorail halted to a stop in the middle of its journey. There is no way out, but to call rescue personnel to force open the doors and climb down the ladders.

It is rather unusual that the responsible personnel described the incident as a minor glitch and unavoidable.

As reported on 4 July 2010.

The Star reported that the Malacca monorail project is facing more delays. The much awaited rm16 million along the Malacca River was hitting another snag. The developer was unlikely able to meet the Aug 29 deadline despite the assurance from the chief minister Datuk Seri Mohad Ali Rustom.

According to the Council's chief engineer, there were still components of the projects which has yet to be completed.

The project initially ran into difficulties over the acquisition of land at Kampung Bunga Raya Pantai,” he said.
The track spans 1.6km, from Taman Rempah in Pengkalan Rama to Kampung Bunga Raya Pantai in the heart of the city. The project was launched in March 2008 as part of the state's project to tap on Malacca River as a tourist attraction.

While they might be able to complete construction of the station on time, he noted that the operators of the monorail would still be required to obtain the necessary approvals from the relevant authorities before the monorail was deemed safe for public use.

He said it usually took three weeks to obtain the certificate of fitness.

“We also need to apply for a license from the Transport Minis­try,” he added.

Rafiee estimated that the monorail would be fully operational and open to the public by the end of September.

On Wednesday, Mohd Ali visited the project site after learning that the opening of the monorail for public use had been delayed twice since May 31.

Besides the monorail, several other features such as mini roller coaster ride is also being developed at the Hang Tuah station.

The project is a joint venture between the council, state subsidiary Kumpulan Melaka Berhad and Agibs Engineering & Construction Sdn Bhd.

The fate of the malacca monorail project remind us of the situation of eye of Malaysia, which was abandoned due to the financial problems.