Diwata-1 Begins 20-Month-Long Journey

The country’s first-ever micro-satellite Diwata-1 begins its 20-month-long journey, it was released into orbit at exactly 7:45 P.M. on Wednesday (Manila time), from the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), nicknamed “Kibo,” where it was housed since reached the International Space Station on March 26, 2015.

Diwata-1

Right after the release of Diwata-1 into space, the Philippine delegation in Japan led by Science Undersecretary for Research and Development Amelia Guevarra were excited and jubilant after the success of the event.

The huge success of the Filipino-made micro-satellite was also meet with cheers in Manila particularly in the University of the Philippines’ College of Science Amphitheater, where at least a hundred students, led by the UP Astronomical Society, gathered to watch the live broadcast of Diwata-1’s deployment.

During the launching of the country’s first micro-satellite some of the top officials of the University of the Philippines were present namely UP Diliman Chancellor Michael Tan and Carlos Primo David, executive director of the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development.

Diwata-1 is the first micro-satellite built by nine Filipino engineers from the University of the Philippines and the Department of Science and Technology’s Advanced Science and Technology Institute. The satellite was “successfully deployed” by JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer at an altitude of 400 kilometers from Earth.

The deployment of the Filipino micro-satellite is also an achievement for Japan because it was a “milestone” for their space agency as it was the first time it deployed a 50-kg class satellite from Kibo, paving the way for the future launches of other micro-satellites.

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