Looking back and forward: GhanaSat-1 - First satellite made-in-Ghana

M. Mbems, Accra, Ghana
Janvier 31st, 2024

G hana hosted the Group on Earth Observation (GEO) week on October 31st to November 4th, 2022 in Accra, Ghana. During the event, the Vice President of Ghana, Mahamudu Bawumia, launched the Ghana Space Policy and Implementation plan. The country set up a Space Science and Technology Institute (GSSTI) in 2012, which is the precursor to the Ghana Space Agency. One expert at the GSSTI told ‟New Economy Ghana” that the country needs a modern space science infrastructure. The technology and the equipment, the researcher said, are indispensable for data on climate change, agriculture, deforestation, and coastal erosion. But the real pioneers in the field are students from the All Nations University, who placed a satellite in orbit in 2017.

Genesis

In May 2017, three graduates from Accra-based All Nations University (ANU), built and launched a mini sattelite called GhanaSat-1 with the partnership of the International Space Station (ISS). Reports on this outstanding achievement are scanty. However, Helen Jameson of Space watch Middle reported that a team of students from All Nations University developed the nano satellite¹. The first rudimentary experimental trial, which is still on YouTube today², involved a flying balloon carrying an experimental CanSat. A CanSat has the shape of a soft-drink aluminum can, which simulates a real nano satellite.

Samuel H. Donkor, President of ANU and Prosper Kofi Ashilevi, Director of the Ghana Space Science and Technology Centre, supervised the work of the students. The University received technical guidance from the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

On June 3rd, 2017, at 5:07 pm GMT, SpaceX Falcon-9 LC-39A took off with GhanaSat-1 on board from the Kennedy Space center. GhanaSat-1 carried a low and high resolution cameras on board to take pictures of Ghana’s coastal areas. The Jpanese Kibo International Space Station (ISS) continued to track GhanaSat-1 until it deorbited in 2019 because of the gravitational pull of the earth³. By the time the sattelite deorbited, the two-year project, which began in October 2015 had cost the ANU about US$500,000⁵.

CubeSats are tiny, versatile small satellites used in low earth orbit (LEO). They have various applications, such as remote sensing, communications, space education, and scientific research. These miniature space crafts have standard dimensions of the 10 cm cubic units with specified electrical power and mass capabilities. CubeSats are light, cheap and less power-consuming than traditional satellites. Old models of CubeSats only orbited in Low Earth orbit of 70 to 2,000 km (45 to 1,200 miles) above the Earth. However, today, CubeSats, are capable of carrying interplanetary missions and travel further into space.

GhanaSat-1 Team

Three students formed the core project team at the All Nations University–Space Systems Technology Laboratory (ANU-SSTL). Since their first space venture, the three friends have gone their separate ways, but their passion for space science has not waned.

Dr. Benjamin Bonsu

Dr. Benjamin Bonsu recalls the doubts and skepticism that preceded GhanaSat-1 experiment. ‟At the time, nobody believed Ghana could build a satellite” he says. ‟My professors thought I was crazy”⁶. Today Bonsu continues research in Edogawa, Tokyo, where he is the first Ghanaian to contribute to a satellite development program sponsored by a Japanese university.

Ernest Teye Matey

Matey has become a powerful advocate of STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) in Ghana. He is the site manager of the NASA Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) in Koforidua, Ghana. The AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) program is a federation of ground-based remote sensing aerosol networks established by NASA. These stations are established in collaboration with national agencies, institutes, universities and even individual scientists. These networks provide continuous, and readily accessible public database of aerosol optical, microphysical and radiative properties for aerosol research and characterization,and also impose standardization of instruments, calibration, processing and distribution.

Joseph Quansah

After GhanaSat-1, Joseph Quansah completed a master’s degree in space systems engineering from the Kyushu Institute of Technology. The Kyushu Institute of Technology is one of the 87 national universities in Japan. Located in Fukuoka Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, it is dedicated to education and research in the fields of science and technology.

Quansah is a speaker in international space-related conferences and workshops, where he advocates for space science in Sub-Saharan Africa. He was a guest at the Young Africa Space Engineers in the Global Space panel in South Africa, organized by the UN-South Africa Symposium on Basic Space Technology.

Looking forward

ANU pioneering work met a frosty reception from the public. Skeptics argued that the country had other pressing priorities, such as alleviating poverty. Since Ghana’s experience, 23 African countries have launched commercial satellites. In May 2023, Kenya was the latest to launch a home-designed nano satellite. Senegal launched Gaindesat-1A, an earth observation nanosatellite on August 16, 2024, from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Space science has commercial opportunities for various economic sectors. But it requires investments and a conducive business and regulatory environment. Developed economies like the United State, China and India have opted for single national or privately-funded space programs. Europe opted for a collective space program through the European Space Agency.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, many continue to argue that the scale of investments required in this industry will drain resources from other pressing development issues. However, the development cost of small satellites has fallen. Also, technological progress and the productivity of modern CubeSats, have opened opportunities for nations with limited financial resources. In other words, the case for a collective regional or pan-African space industry is solid. The nascent industry will also have to overcome the fact that many country in Sub-Saharan Africa continue to see sattelite ventures either as a question of national pride or national security, and prefer to work on such projects alone. Pooling resources maximize advantages or minimizes risk and renders future initiatives more economically more viable.

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