NigComSat: Taking Corruption To Space.

Terver Atsar

Space may have already been contaminated by debris from failed space missions by the USA, Rusia and China and recently India with approximately 23,000 items of space junk inadvertently placed in orbit or having outlived their usefulness floating above Earth. These include Payloads that go into the wrong orbit, satellites with run-down batteries, and leftover rocket boosters. But am sure corruption has not reached space yet. However if recent reports about the NigComSat project are anything to go by then it appears Nigeria is set to set the pace by introducing corruption to Space.

The Minister of State for Science and Technology, Dr. Alhassan Zaku has explained that the reportedly missing N40 billion NigComSat Satellite developed a technical fault that resulted in the inability of the operational batteries to be charged by the solar panels. He waxed dramatic and stated that they decided to ‘park it like a car’. If I heard him well then indeed, I am expected to believe that there is a parking space in Space.

While not doubting his explanation about power failure, I take the ‘parked car’ theory with a pitch of salt. It should be stressed that in the world of space technology, technical glitches are commonplace and could result from even minute details, which sometimes could not be easily predictable, and as such no one should be put to blame as such without a detailed technical investigation. But while this is pending, the Minister could do well to desist from downplaying the problem and effectively deceiving the taxpayers whose sweat was squeezed to cough out the N40billion sunk into the project.

When America lost the Space Shuttle Columbia in 2003 they did not create an alibi to hide the truth from the American citizens. They carried out a full investigation and revealed what led to the explosion of the shuttle on re-entry to earth atmosphere. It was discovered that a chip of insulating foam that fell off from the craft’s external fuel tank at launch time damaged the heat shield. This discovery led to the development of improved foam application technique and devising of in-space repair techniques. Since then Shuttles Discovery and Atlantis have been lunched successfully without a hitch. That is how a country that is serious about business in space should go about it.

Space technology is a risky and costly venture and developing countries with lean resources like Nigeria must enter the territory with the right culture and attitude; that is to learn from past mistakes and improve for the future. This cannot be achieved when a serious issue like loss of power on a satellite lunched barely a year ago, is explained away casually as a minor problem comparable to parking a faulty car in your garage.  

Hear Zaku: “Because if it is not parked there will be no energy left to move it but because there was still some energy left, we decided to move it aside and park it in a safe place. Because if it is not done, it will lose all the energy and become like a lose canon which will keep rolling about and hitting other satellites in orbit. And of course almost all satellites are carrying loads that are paid for and once you make that damage you are liable. So we decided that they should park it while repairs continue,” Hmmm. Sounds like a scene in Star Wars.

Now the questions Zaku must answer: Where exactly is the ‘safe place’ that this Satellite has been ‘parked’? In which orbit? At what altitude? And what are the steps and technology available to repair the failed power system? How long will the repair take? And at what cost?

Every amateur space enthusiast should know that satellites don’t just hang out there. They have to stay in a pre-defined orbit and it takes the availability of power to operate the computers that control the thrusters (rocket motors) that keep the satellite in orbit and at the right orientation. In other words, power failure is inevitably the failure of the whole Satellite and the craft is now as good as any of the other 23,000 pieces of junk littering the Low Earth and Geosynchronous Orbits. So in essence, someone needs to tell Zaku that there is simply no parking space in Space.

Even India which as lately as the 80's was still considered a developing country has evolved a robust space technology that has seen her record a successful launch of her Chandrayaan spacecraft on 22 October this year, to the Moon’s orbit with a probe designed to make observations as it descends, testing systems needed to land future robotic spacecraft on the Moon.  

But here we have someone playing politics with taxpayers money. Nigerians deserve to know the truth and nothing but the truth. Why must it be the Minister that should explain the technical issues around the failed satellite? Where is the Mission Control Commander or whatever title he is called? When it comes to issues that are technical in nature, our Ministers should know their limits and allow the most competent persons to offer explanations. They should know that their role is mostly administrative and they are not expected to be jack-of-all-trades. 

This is how I was disgusted the other day reading, where the Nigerian Minister of State for Energy (Gas) Chief Emmanuel Odusina, was quoted as saying that epileptic power supply in the country is due to shortage of natural gas to the hydro-electricity generating stations! Imagine! Obviously the honourable Minister does not know the difference between thermal power stations and hydroelectricity generating stations. 

With this failure, speculations are already rife that somebody must have compromised the quality of the job done by the Chinese firm on that satellite either through the use of substandard materials or obsolete technology. If this is true then the world should watch out for us in Space. We are coming in full gear to showcase our tradition and culture of corruption up there. We cannot allow the world super powers to continue to dominate Space at the detriment of the black man. After all it is our son that will soon take over the reins of power in the worlds most powerful nation.  

But jokes apart I am ashamed that Nigeria, which has not developed the capacity to manufacture even a bicycle locally, forayed into space with nothing to show but the culture of negligence and the ‘nothing-works-here’ attitude.

That the satellite was build for us by another ‘third world’ country alone speaks volumes of our technological backwardness. And is sickening that someone at the helm of that ministry has not felt any challenge at all but is busy playing the ostrich with cock-and-bull stories.

Robot  # 1 | 15.11.2008 09:10

NigComSat: Taking Corruption To Space. Terver Atsar Space may have already been contaminated by debris from failed space missions by the USA, Rusia and China and recently India with approximately 23,000 items of space junk inadvertently placed in orbit or having outlived their usefulness floating above Earth. These include Payloads that go into the wrong orbit, satellites with run-down batteries, and leftover rocket boosters. But am sure corruption has not reached space yet. However if recent reports about the NigComSat projectare anything to go by then it appears Nigeria is set to set the pace by introducing corruption to Space. The Minister of State for Science and Technology, Dr. Alhassan Zaku has explained that the reportedly missing N40 billion NigComSat Satellite developed a technical fault that resulted in the inability of the operational batteries to be charged by the solar panels. He waxe...Read the full article.

nijalaw  # 2 | 16.11.2008 08:48

=> Nigerian satellite fails in space From BBC World News Service The satellite has developed power trouble A multi-million dollar Nigerian satellite launched in May 2007 has been shut down to prevent it spinning out of control and damaging others in orbit. Chinese-built NigComSat-1 cost the African oil producer $340m (£228m). The Nigerian government said insurance would pay for a replacement and Nigerians should still be proud of the country's satellite programme. But telecoms experts told the BBC it was a "white elephant in space" and the whole operation was a "debacle". NigComSat-1 was launched 18 months ago to much fanfare from the government, but it has been mired in controversy ever since. On Tuesday, controllers shut the satellite down because it was having problems with its power supply, the government announced. The satellite was meant to provide communications for government agencies and broadband internet. 'Worthy investment' "This has been a real debacle from day one," a telecoms engineer told the BBC. The engineer, who works as a consultant for a multinational communications company, did not want to be named. The satellite was limited because the type of frequency it used was disturbed by clouds in the atmosphere, and did not work properly in Nigeria's rainy season or during the Harmattan, when clouds of dust blow down from the Sahara, he said. The satellite also operated on frequencies already allocated to other companies and interfered with other providers' equipment. But Information Minister John Odey denied the satellite was not worth investing in. "No technology can be a waste of money," he said. "It is a worthy investment, and Nigerians should see it as desirable. It has served a purpose and will continue to do so." Power trouble Local media initially reported that the satellite had "gone missing". But on Wednesday Minister of State for Science and Technology Alhassan Zaku told journalists it had lost power and had to be "parked, like you would park a car". "If it wasn't parked and it lost all its power there would be no energy to even move it and it would be like a loose cannon and would keep rolling about and hit other satellites in the orbit," he told reporters. According to analysts, Nigeria has made nearly $2 trillion in oil revenues over the last 30 years, but its population are mostly poor. Africa's most populous nation lacks basic infrastructure like power and water, and many Nigerians thought the satellite showed the government did not have its priorities right. The news that the satellite could not get enough power to run has led to jokes that, as one e-mail doing the rounds put it: Nigeria has "exported its electricity generation problems to space". Why cant we get anything done right? How can we rely on Chinese technology when it's not even in the top 20 of the world. We have white elephant projects dotted all over our landscape & now we finally have one in space. What next one in hell & another in Heaven?

delemajek  # 3 | 16.11.2008 17:54

The hopeless politicians will soon take their shameless acts to Hell In the words of my cousin, Nigeria has since lost her Glory

Eniyan  # 4 | 17.11.2008 04:15

The Minister's explaination was convoluted. A simple, clear and clean explaination would do. Other relevant explaination should be made by the appropriate persons, e.g. the Network Operations Center Manager, Chief Engineer, MD, etc etc. Since the satellite has been launched over a year now, a Mission Control Commander referenced in the article does not apply anymore. Enquiring minds want to know "WHO" compromised the quality of the job done by the Chinese firm either through the use of substandard materials or obsolete technology? The Universities in Nigeria are so degraded we cant develop anything basic, not to even talk rocket science, etc.

ComradeX  # 5 | 17.11.2008 15:27

=nijalaw;290453>Why cant we get anything done right? How can we rely on Chinese technology when it's not even in the top 20 of the world. We have white elephant projects dotted all over our landscape & now we finally have one in space. What next one in hell & another in Heaven? China is present in the top 20 alright, and it must be said that others like Australia and Italy also relied on foreign assistance for the first launch. I do share your concerns about our preparedness for a foray into this technically advanced area of satellite technology however. First launch by country inc... First launch by country inc...<16> Country Year of first launch First satellite Payloads in orbit in 2008<17> Soviet Union 1957 Sputnik 1 1398 United States 1958 Explorer 1 1042 Canada 1962 Alouette 1 25 Italy 1964 San Marco 1 14 France 1965 Astérix 44 Australia 1967 WRESAT 11 Germany 1969 Azur 27 Japan 1970 Ōsumi 111 China 1970 Dong Fang Hong I 64 United Kingdom 1971 Prospero X-3 25 Poland 1973 Intercosmos Kopernikus 500 ? Netherlands 1974 ANS 5 Spain 1974 Intasat 9 India 1975 Aryabhata 34 Indonesia 1976 Palapa A1 10 Czechoslovakia 1978 Magion 1 5 Bulgaria 1981 Intercosmos 22 Brazil 1985 Brasilsat A1 11 Mexico 1985 Morelos 1 7 Sweden 1986 Viking 11 Israel 1988 Ofeq 1 7 Luxembourg 1988 Astra 1A 15 Argentina 1990 Lusat 10 Portugal 1993 PoSAT-1 1 Thailand 1993 Thaicom 1 6 Turkey 1994 Turksat 1B 5 Chile 1995 FASat-Alfa 1 Malaysia 1996 MEASAT 4 Norway 1997 Thor 2 3 Philippines 1997 Mabuhay 1 2 Egypt 1998 Nilesat 101 3 Denmark 1999 Ørsted 3 South Africa 1999 SUNSAT 1 Saudi Arabia 2000 Saudisat 1A 12 United Arab Emirates 2000 Thuraya 1 3 Algeria 2002 Alsat 1 1 Greece 2003 Hellas Sat 2 2 Nigeria 2003 Nigeriasat 1 2 Iran 2005 Sina-1 1 Kazakhstan 2006 KazSat 1 1 Colombia 2007 Libertad 1 1 Vietnam 2008 VINASAT-1 1 Venezuela 2008 Venesat-1 1