China eyes Iran help to craft GPS sats

China has sought Iran’s assistance for the making of navigational satellites, head of the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) says in a report.

ISA Chief Hamid Fazeli made the remark on Thursday, adding that a number of other Asian countries have expressed readiness to collaborate with the Islamic Republic in its space projects, IRNA reported.

“The Islamic Republic has made invaluable achievements in the field of space, which are bound to grow through the endeavors of Iranian scientists,” Fazeli said.

He further pointed out that the country now eyes deep space explorations and made a reference to ISA’s efforts to increase the participation of private sector in order to boost Iran’s space plans.

His comments came at a speech in the central Iranian province of Qazvin where the country has initiated plans for the building of an industrial city showcasing modern space technologies.

The ISA director went on to say that telecommunications, observation and research satellites are amongst the common types of orbiting objects which are indicative of a country’s technological advancements. Other major satellites include military, navigation and weather satellites.

China has plans to boost its satellite navigation system, known as Beidou. The system is expected to focus on atmospheric changes and earth tremors.

Satellites have been orbiting the earth since the late 1950s. There are thousands of satellites from more than 50 countries, which currently circle the Earth. A few hundred of these man-made objects, however, are fully operational while the rest make up the used fragments known as space debris.

Iran joined the club of countries with satellite launching know-how in 2009 with the launch of its domestic Omid satellite that blasted into space by Safir carrier.