[Satellite Today 11-26-08] A second South African satellite is scheduled to be launched in March, according to a Nov. 25 statement from the South African Foreign Affairs Ministry.
    The Earth observation satellite, built at a cost of 25 million South African rand ($2.5 million), will be carried into space aboard a Russian rocket. The satellite will feed data to the Center for Scientific Research Institute‘s application centre in Hartebeeshoek, South Africa.
    The satellite is expected to have a lif span of between five and seven years and also will provide communications for amateur radio and scientific experiments.
    South Africa’s first satellite, Sunsat, was launched in 1999 with assistance from NASA.