VAST has been cooperating with JAXA in the field of space technology since 2006. Under the support of JAXA, VAST engineers have researched and built three "Made in Vietnam" microsatellites including PicoDragon, NanoDragon and MicroDragon, and successfully launched into orbit by JAXA in 2013, 2019 and 2021, respectively. This cooperation facilitates VAST to carry out the task assigned by the Government to implement the project "Vietnam Space Center" from the ODA capital of the Government of Japan and Vietnamese counterpart capital. Currently, the project is actively completing the infrastructure of research, training and receiving technology transfer for small satellite production from Japan; and developed LOTUSat-1 – Vietnam's first radar satellite with high resolution, used in weather conditions day and night. 

Prof. Acad. Chau Van Minh, President of VAST and Prof. Hiroshi Yamakawa, President of JAXA handed over the cooperation agreement in the presence of President of Socialist Republic of Vietnam Vo Van Thuong and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio

In addition, JAXA has shared more than 130,000 Vietnamese images (including nearly 100,000 images of the Vietnam Data Cube satellite data sharing system) from ALOS-2 satellites and allowed free exploitation and sharing to the Vietnamese research community. ALOS-2 satellite imagery has been used to study rice in the Mekong Delta, fast-track floods, and monitor forests,... The two sides co-hosted the 2022 Asia-Pacific Regional Aviation Agencies Forum Meeting; Vietnam-Japan Cooperation Workshop on Comprehensive Development of Space Science and Technology in 2023. 

Following the exciting cooperation activities over the past time, this cooperation agreement between VAST and JAXA will be the basis for the two sides to share experiences in operating and exploiting LOTUSat-1 satellites in orbit to improve the efficiency of using Vietnam Space Center; contributing to promoting scientific and technological cooperation between Vietnam and Japan, tightening the comprehensive strategic partnership that has just been established between the two countries.

This cooperation agreement between VAST and JAXA will be the basis for the two sides to share experiences in operating and exploiting LOTUSat-1 satellites in orbit to improve the efficiency of Vietnam National Space Center. (image source: //www.vietnamplus.vn)

Translated by Phuong Ha
Link to Vietnamese version