Council reveals details of Göktürk-2’s launch

ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency

The Technical Research Council of Turkey’s (TÜBİTAK) vice president, Hasan Palaz, revealed details of the launching of the Göktürk-2 satellite in China and said visual records of the satellite will be captured in a month.

Palaz said the Turkish team that brought the satellite to China conducted all the necessary work in the Asian country, completing the rocket integration and test processes, and witnessed the moment when the satellite was launched into space. According to Palaz, most accidents occur during the moment of launch and the whole satellite could be destroyed in the event of such an incident.

“So, that was a critical stage. But now, [the satellite] went into orbit even under the standard deviation they gave. The weather was so clear then, we saw the rocket and satellite as clear as the stars. It was a very successful operation,” Palaz said.

When asked when the visual records of the satellite could be taken, Palaz said “Some procedures should be taken before taking visual records. They normally last about a month, but we are trying hard to do it earlier.” Palaz also said establishing a launch center in Turkey is possible. “As long as the resources are allocated and true plans are made, nothing will be impossible,” Palaz said. Göktürk-2 was launched in China on Dec. 18.