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Armenia’s first space satellite has been launched into the Earth’s orbit by SpaceX, Nikol Pashinyan told a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

“On May 25, 2022, at 10:35pm Yerevan time, Armenia’s first space satellite was launched into the Earth’s orbit on a SpaceX spacecraft from Cape Canaveral in the United States. This happened thanks to the cooperation between the Armenian state Geocosmos company and the Spanish Satlantis,” the premier said.

“It's impossible to overestimate the significance of this, with this Armenia is embarking into the era of space activities and we hope that our rich traditions in this area will be restored. I am speaking about the space scientific-production area which existed in Armenia for many years. In this context I’d like to stress that one of our priorities is the localization of space technologies in Armenia, as well as organization of space equipment production,” he noted.

By the end of 2023, a satellite control center-receiving station will be established in Armenia, around which a scientific team of specialists will be formed, Pashinyan said. One of the main functions of the center is to control the satellite and receive space photos. It is planned that the receiving station will provide satellite data transmission services also to other satellite operators.

“The satellite photos will be used in Armenia for border control, emergency prevention and management, environmental protection, including climate change monitoring, urban planning, road construction, geology, and more,” he added.