Morocco Prepares to Launch Second Observation Satellite

Morocco has joined the limited club of states owning high resolution observation satellites. After the successful launch of a reconnaissance satellite last November called Mohammed VI A, Morocco prepares to launch a second similar satellite with a wider range of observation called Mohammed VI B.

News reports speak of a second satellite that is the fruit of a partnership between Morocco and the European space agency (ESA).

The new satellite is scheduled to be ready for launch in 2018 but the exact date has not been announced yet.

Like the Mohammed VI A satellite, The Mohammed VI-B will be used primarily for mapping and land surveying activities, spatial planning, monitoring of agricultural activities, prevention and management of natural disasters, and monitoring of environmental changes and desertification.

It will also bolster Morocco’s monitoring of its borders.

The Mohammed VI-A Satellite was built by Thales Alenia Space as system prime contractor and Airbus as co-prime, for a cost worth some €500 million.

The North African kingdom has thus become the third country in Africa, after Egypt and South Africa, to have its own satellite.