Tag: Pakistan
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What Really Caused Pakistan’s 2022 Floods: Extreme Rainfall, Snowmelt, or Glacial Lake Outburst Floods?
In brief: Published in Remote Sensing of Environment, this study does more than use Sentinel-1 data to map Pakistan’s catastrophic 2022 floods. It seeks to answer three broader questions: How much of the country was flooded? Why was the disaster so severe? And was it worse than the major flood of 2010? The authors developed…
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China’s First Export Satellite Delivered In Orbit Retires After 15 Years of Service
On August 24, 2026, PakSAT-1R completed all deorbiting operations following the execution of its final orbital control command, formally leaving the 38° East orbital position it had occupied for 15 years. Affectionately known as “PakSat-1R” by Chinese and Pakistani space professionals, the communications satellite concluded its mission with a graceful final farewell to space. The…
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From Spectral Fingerprints to Target Prioritization: How Hyperspectral Satellites Support Mineral Exploration
According to the International Energy Agency’s Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2026, global critical mineral exploration spending fell by more than 10% in 2025. Exploration spending on lithium and nickel declined by around 45%, while spending on copper remained broadly stable. This increasingly cautious investment environment stands in contrast to the persistent long-term pressure on critical…
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China prepares cargo, crew, and deep space missions, as commercial sector steps towards reusability
China is preparing to launch both cargo and crew missions to its Tiangong space station, as a new cargo freighter is tested in low-Earth orbit and new designs are revealed to expand the orbiting outpost. Celebrating 70 years since the foundation of its space program this year, China is also advancing plans for deep space…
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China Hits 26 Launches in 2026 with Pakistan EO Satellite Mission
What does China’s latest launch surge tell us about global competition? China executed three separate Long March missions over the weekend, bringing its 2026 total to 26 launches and maintaining the world’s highest annual launch cadence. The most significant payload was Pakistan’s PRSC-EO3 Earth observation satellite, launched via Long March 2D from Jiuquan Satellite Launch…
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Launch Preview: Vulcan launches USSF-87, SpaceX sends Crew-12 to ISS
The launch manifest is full this week, with eight launches scheduled from different launch sites worldwide. The week kicked off with a SpaceX Starlink mission on Wednesday, followed by a busy Thursday, during which five different rockets — including a Vulcan, a Proton, and the first Ariane 64 — launched. SpaceX and NASA are launching…
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Long March 2C launches two satellites for Pakistan
China launched two new satellites for Pakistan on Monday, in the first of two Chinese launched scheduled for July 9. The launch took place at 03:56 UTC from the LC43/94 launch complex at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center using a Long March-2C/SMA launch vehicle. Onboard were the Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSS-1) and the PakTES-1A satellite.…
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Long March 2C launches two satellites for Pakistan
China launched two new satellites for Pakistan on Monday, in the first of two Chinese launched scheduled for July 9. The launch took place at 03:56 UTC from the LC43/94 launch complex at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center using a Long March-2C/SMA launch vehicle. Onboard were the Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSS-1) and the PakTES-1A satellite.…