Launch of ‘Macau Science 2’ scheduled for 2028: MUST

Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) announced earlier this week its plan to launch a second homegrown satellite, “Macau Science 2,” by 2028.

Zhang Keke, director of the State Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences at the Macau University, confirmed that preparatory work is complete.

“We look forward to the Macau SAR government signing a cooperation agreement with the National Space Administration to enable the satellite’s construction and launch,” Zhang said.

Currently, the plan is pending a formal cooperation agreement between the Macau SAR government and China’s National Space Administration (CNSA), according to local media.

Zhang confirmed “once the agreement is signed, we can start work. Our team of scientists and engineers can start working on Macau Science and Technology 2, and we can strive to launch the Macau Science and Technology 2 satellite in 2028.”

The new satellite will join “Macau Science 1,” launched in May 2023, which marked Macau’s first sovereign space mission and has since generated nearly 20 terabytes of high-precision geomagnetic data.

Together, the two satellites will form a constellation providing high-precision, three-dimensional observation system of Earth’s magnetic field and space environment.