RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Brazilian government is creating a program to manufacture 13 satellites.
The Federal Gazette of May 10th published an executive order creating the Programa Constelação Catarina (Catarina Constellation Program) and the Consórcio Catarina (Catarina Consortium), which provides for the creation and manufacture of 13 space satellites.
Developed by the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), the program foresees a “constellation of satellites” that will help Brazil monitor the climate, in order to prevent natural disasters and enhance precision agriculture.
“The Constelação Catarina Program comprises a set of consortium initiatives aimed at developing space systems based on the use of nanosatellites, which complement each other through the collaborative sharing of space infrastructure, knowledge, data, services and space applications,” notes the ordinance establishing guidelines and instruments to be adopted as a reference for the program.
The regulation foresees the creation of the Consórcio Catarina, which is the set of participating institutions to work jointly in the cooperation and activities of the Constelação Catarina Program, which will prioritize the national agricultural and civil defense sectors.
In addition to presenting the instances and organization of the Consórcio Catarina, the ordinance provides for the creation – and sets the implementation guidelines – of an internal regulation still to be launched.
The consortium will have the Brazilian Space Agency as a permanent member. The role, attributions, participants and clients profile of the Catarina Council and of the executive group of the Consórcio Catarina bodies are outlined in the ordinance.