In a historic moment for the African nation of Ghana, NASA launched the country’s first-ever satellite, the GhanaSat-1, into orbit from the International Space Station on July 7. GhanaSat-1 is the first private university satellite developed in Sub-Saharan Africa.
A team of engineering students, led in part by Dr. Richard Damoah, director of the Space Systems and Technology Lab at All Nations University College (ANUC), located in the southern Ghanaian city of Koforidua, developed the satellite as part of a two-year, collaborative project between ANUC and Kyushu Institute of Technology in Fukuoka, Japan. Dr. Damoah is also a faculty member in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics of Morgan’s School of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences, and works on the NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Technology and Research (GESTAR) program on behalf of the University.
GhanaSat-1, a CubeSat satellite equipped with low- and high-resolution cameras as well as other technology, will be used to measure atmospheric density and monitor Ghana’s coastline for mapping purposes. In addition, it will help the country build capacity in space science and technology, further enhancing Ghana’s future capabilities in utilizing satellite technology.