Arabsat, the first Arab communications satellite system
Arabsat, primer sistema árabe de satélites de comunicaciones
- Date
- 1985 · confidence high
- Place
- Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Credited to
- Arab League; Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Arabsat)
- Field
- Movement
What it is
Arabsat-1A, launched in February 1985 on an Ariane rocket, was the first satellite of an organisation created by Arab states for satellite telephony and television. It laid the basis for pan-Arab television.
Arabsat was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Riyadh; the satellite was built in France. Coordinates are those of the headquarters.
What it led to
- Arab satellite television network and pan-Arab channels
- second and third generation Arabsat satellites
- the first space mission with an Arab astronaut (Prince Sultan bin Salman, 1985, aboard a Shuttle)