It should be considered that the obsolescence of technology can be a problem during the development of a conventional satellite, which is not the case for small satellites due to their short development times. Between the start and end of operations of a classical mission, the duration can be between five and 15 years, while nanosatellites have a development time of less than eight months. In addition, the development time of small satellites compared to medium or large satellites is also significantly reduced. Their small volume and size make them much easier and cheaper to load onto launch vehicles. However, CubeSats’ engineering and development projects, depending on their specifications, can be covered with little more than USD 500,000 dollars, a significantly less figure than those of conventional missions. In the past, many African projects could not go ahead due to a lack of investment. Source: Space in Africa What are the advantages of small satellites? Source: Space in Africa Africa’s annual expenses on small satellites. Source: Space in Africa Distribution of African small satellites launched per year. Source: Space in Africaĭistribution of small satellites per country. Percentage of African small satellites to large satellites. South Africa had the most diversified group funders, including participation from a private sector player and a university. Countries including Kenya and Algeria received funding from the Italian and the UK Space Agency, respectively. In addition, the majority of the small satellite projects were funded by the national governments, often as a tool for capacity development. However, due to their relative affordability, Africa has only spent about USD 188 million on small satellites, with the most yearly expense on small satellites occurring in 2011. Since South Africa’s microsatellite launch, the SUNSAT, Africa has gone ahead to launch 30 more small satellites into space, accounting for approximately 66% of all satellites launched. It is a continent full of opportunities, whose governments and companies are beginning to take advantage of, to ride the wave of this space business, which, according to the consultancy firm MarketsandMarkets will reach USD 7.4 billion by 2026. The manufacture of these small satellites is now possible for most regions and countries globally, a situation that is not unrelated to Africa. This differs from the prevailing tendency of the 20th century, in which large space companies or agencies were the only ones with the financing capacity and technology to access space. In the light of this revolution, the NewSpace phenomenon was born based on low costs and the miniaturisation of electronic components. The CubeSat standard emerged in these educational institutions, and it allows the manufacture of satellites at smaller scales (10x10x10 cm as a unit) compared to conventional satellites. Globally, it is a paradigm shift that began in 1999 between California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) and Stanford University. It is a fact that has been taking place thanks to the ‘ democratisation of space ‘, a process that involves the opening of space exploration to many companies, governments and institutions that can process and commercialise space data. The space industry is continuously expanding.
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