KUCHING: A Sarawakian is at the forefront of Malaysia’s latest milestone in the space industry with the successful launch of the country’s first Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite, TerraX-1 (AIRSAT-03) on Oct 19.
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian lauded founder and chairman of TerraXpace Sdn Bhd Datuk Stanley Ling Tiung Leng for steering the nation’s historic breakthrough in satellite development.
“It is a Sarawakian behind this milestone for the space industry. Heartiest congratulations to Datuk Stanley Ling and his team at TerraXpace for the successful launch of satellite TerraX-1,” Dr Sim said in a Facebook post.
He recalled that just over a month ago, on Sept 17, TerraXpace signed a cooperation and delivery agreement with AirSat.
Dr Sim said it was a proud moment for TerraX and an important milestone for Malaysia’s first SAR satellite, marking the start of a new chapter in space exploration and opening up more opportunities for growth in Malaysia and Sarawak.
The TerraX-1 was successfully launched on Oct 19 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China aboard the Kinetica-1 rocket at 11.33 am (Malaysia time).
TerraXpace said the SAR technology allows the satellite to capture high-resolution images day or night, through cloud cover and adverse weather, enabling consistent Earth observation data.
Its applications include disaster response, agricultural monitoring, environmental protection, maritime surveillance and infrastructure planning.
Ling described the launch as a proud achievement for both TerraXpace and Malaysia, reaffirming the company’s commitment to drive innovation and position the nation as an emerging player in the space economy.
