BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, OCT 17 -
Argentina launched its first domestically built communications satellite Thursday.
The ARSAT-1 satellite
is the first to be constructed with local technology in Latin America.
It was built by a crew of about 500 scientists over seven years at a
cost of $250 million. The satellite was launched from a base in French Guiana and is to orbit 22,000 miles (36,000 kilometers) above Earth.
"ARSAT-1 is on its way to space. What a thrill," President Cristina
Fernandez said shortly after the launch via her Twitter account.
ARSAT-1 is designed to provide digital television and cellphone
services to Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay for the next 15
years. It's also expected to improve telephone and Internet connections
in remote places, including for scientists working in the Antarctic
region.
Fernandez has said that through ARSAT-1, Argentina joins an elite group that is able to build these types of satellite s. Other nations with this capability include European Union states, the United States, Russia, China, India, Israel and Japan.
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