UAE satellite Al Yah 3 completes orbit testing, ready for commercial use

DUBAI, May 30 (Xinhua) -- The third satellite launched by United Arab Emirates (UAE) satellite operator Yahsat into space earlier this year has completed its orbit testing, capable of offering commercial services, Dubai daily Gulf news reported on Wednesday.

Yahsat, wholly owned by Abu Dhabi government-controlled Mubadala Investment Company, announced the successful completion of Al Yah 3's testing mission, said the report.

In January this year, the satellite was launched into orbit from French Guiana to expand Yahsat's Ka-band coverage to 19 additional markets in Africa covering 60 percent of the population.

Ka-band is derived from the German word "kurz" (meaning short) and "above" and describes enhanced frequencies in satellite communication.

"Our investments in the aerospace sector amount to 20 billion dirham (5.44 billion U.S. dollars)," tweeted UAE's Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Yahsat's previous two satellites Al Yah 1 (launched in 2011) and Al Yah 2 (2012) provide broadband and communication services to 140 countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

In 2014, the UAE, a major oil supplier, launched the Emirates Mars Mission with the aim to reach the Red Planet by 2021, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Gulf state, and to send an unmanned space exploration mission to Mars by 2020. Enditem