For information only - not an official document
UNIS/MA/241
Vienna, 11 February 2019
Media representatives are invited to the
Board Room D and reception in the Coffee Corner, Vienna International Centre
VIENNA, 11 February (United Nations Information Service) - Members of the Committee for the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), and members of the international space community, will gather in Vienna from 11 to 22 February 2019 for the Scientific and Technical Session (STSC) of COPUOS. Participants will discuss scientific evolutions in the sector and their potential to address new and emerging sustainable development challenges.
On the side of STSC, UNOOSA and the Government of Japan are organizing a side event on progress and next steps in their joint cooperation and capacity building initiatives.
Together with the Japanese Space Agency JAXA, UNOOSA runs the KiboCUBE programme, which offers institutions from developing countries the opportunity to develop a 1U Cube Satellite to be deployed from the International Space Station (ISS) Japanese Experiment Module (Kibo) "KiboCUBE".
The first CubeSat developed under the programme, from the University of Nairobi, was deployed from the ISS on 11 May 2018 and was the first Kenyan satellite to be launched into space, as well as the first object launched into space with the support and under the auspices of the UN. Representatives from the Government of Kenya will discuss their experience at the event, where more exciting stories and updates on the programme will also be shared.
More information about KiboCUBE can be found here: http://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/psa/hsti/kibocube.html
The side event will also present the Fellowship Programme on Nano-Satellite, which provides Masters and Doctorate degrees to students from developing countries. This programme is run by UNOOSA and the Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech) and is supported by the Government of Japan.
More information about the Fellowship can be found here: http://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/psa/hsti/kibocube.html
The event will include remarks from:
Mitsuru Kitano, Ambassador of Japan to the International Organisations in Vienna
Simonetta Di Pippo, Director, UNOOSA
James K.T. Aruasa, Chairman Board of Directors of the Kenya Space Agency, Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kenya
Yoshikazu Shoji, Director, JAXA International Relations and Research Department
Shigeki Kamigaichi, Senior Expert, JAXA Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate
George Maeda, Associate Professor, Kyutech
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Follow @UNOOSA on Twitter for updates.
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Media representatives who wish to attend the event, and who are not accredited to the VIC, should write to press.vienna[at]un.org.
To request interviews with UNOOSA please contact:
Ottavia
Pesce
Communication Officer
United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs
Telephone: (+43-1) 26060 8717
Email: pesce[at]un.org
