EARTH OBSERVATION MISSION: NIGERIA'S COOPERATIVE EFFORTS IN THE DMC CONSORTIUM

摘要

Nigeria is one of the few active players from the continent of Africa that is generally well committed to Space Science and technology development, and specifically to Earth observation projects. The purpose of her specific commitment to Earth Observation projects is to find solution to the problem of infrequent and expensive images of man-made and natural disasters devastating the world and causing suffering to man on Earth. It was in the bid to find a suitable means of monitoring these devastating and sorrowful events that Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) proposed the international cooperative project - Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) Consortium - which Nigeria embraced. Nigeria has participated in the first and second construction of a network of affordable Low Earth Orbit microsatellites - first and second generation of satellites - which the participant countries independently owned. This work focuses on the cooperative efforts of Nigerian Government in the Disaster Monitoring Constellation projects. It talks briefly on the Nigerian space project. It discusses the DMC consortium and Nigeria's participation. It highlights the benefits that accrue to Nigeria in her participation in the projects. It concludes with some recommendations.