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Based on the statements of Prime Minister Rama, according to which Albania will launch two satellites in the first months of next year, as well as the lack of information on how much such initiatives will cost the Albanian state (in case they would be paid from him), we addressed some questions to Mr. Mariglen Angjellari. Angjellari worked for several years as a chemist in a Company that produced the Vega C Rocket in carbon fiber. This product was later sold to Ariane Group. Ariane Group is the leading European company that manages and provides satellite launch services from the European space center. Marenglen answered our three questions as follows: What is a satellite launched into space?
A satellite is a very complex device to be launched into space, in different orbits around the earth for purposes ranging from technical to military. The main functions relate to the purposes of studying, monitoring, navigating and transmitting data to different regions of the Earth users can be public or private.
How Much Does a Satellite Cost?
The cost of producing a satellite is very high. Not only are that but also the waiting times very long. This is because the demand for satellites is very high and manufacturing companies are very few worldwide. This is because the production of a satellite is a very complicated engineering process. So, the realization of a satellite should be planned first and then launched into space. Nowadays this is quite difficult.
The price of a satellite depends on many factors from the complexity of its realization to the purpose of use. It even affects the place of its production. For example, if we talk about satellites that are sent for climatic purposes, the price goes up to 300 million Euros, while the price of a spy satellite goes to 500 million Euros.
To this must be added the maintenance and repair costs which are very high. The service requester must pay the same frequencies (bands) as the television broadcasters operate. These costs reach up to 1.5 million Euros per year. The largest manufacturers in Europe are Airbus Safran, OHB, Thales Alenia and SES.
How much does it cost to launch a satellite?
The launch of a satellite is carried out by companies or specialized institutions in specific locations and certain terrestrial coordinates, preferably equatorial. For example, the European Union (EU) has only one satellite launch center. It is located in French Guiana, an equatorial country bordering Venezuela in South America. This center operates under the management of the European Special Agency (ESA) and the French Special Agency (CNES). Ariane Group is the leading European company that manages and provides satellite launch services from the European space center. The missiles that serve this purpose are 2, Ariane 5 and Vega C. The construction of these missiles is done exclusively in European countries such as France, Italy and Germany.
The cost of launching a Satellite is closely related to the weight of the Satellite and the height of the Satellite’s placement in Space. Currently, the cost of casting by a European company varies from 25-40 thousand dollars / kg. Similar prices are offered by American companies. Throwing space prices have a wide range but the minimum runs $ 10 million.
There are often times when companies offer to launch several satellites on the same launch to minimize costs. In this case the price can be halved or even less.
/abcnews.al
