EgyptSat-1 is Egypt's first Earth remote-sounding satellite. This satellite has been jointly built by Egypt's National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences together with the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau in Ukraine and was launched onboard a Dnepr rocket on 17 April 2007.
The satellite, launched from Kazakhstan with the aim of providing necessary information to serve development in all fields, Egyptian Higher Education Minister Mr. Hani Hillal said. He underlined the importance of scientific research and its role in educational, agricultural and other development fields.
Egyptsat 1 carries two remote sensing devices -- an infrared one and a multi-spectrum one, according to an earlier MENA report. Egyptsat 1 is the country’s first satellite for scientific research, the second and the third satellites will be named Egyptsat 2 and Sahrasat, respectively.