EO·Atlas
Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission
Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) is Pakistan's national space agency, with official material describing a mandate across space science, technology development, and national space applications [1]. The organisation traces its origin to a 1961 committee and became an independent commission in 1981; governance references record the National Command Authority in current material and Ministry of Defence in older material [2].
For Earth observation users, SUPARCO is relevant as the national operator behind PRSS-1, PakTES-1A, Badr-B, and the PRSC EO-series constellation [3][4][5][6][7]. PRSS-1 is an optical remote-sensing satellite supporting natural-resource and CPEC monitoring, while PakTES-1A is an indigenously designed technology-evaluation satellite with an Earth-observation optical payload [3][4]. The PRSC-EO line extends Pakistan's electro-optical Earth-observation capacity, with PRSC-EO1 launched in January 2025 and PRSC-EO3 in April 2026 as part of a three-satellite EO constellation [6][7].
Operates
- PRSS-1 (Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite-1)Operational
Launched 2018-07-09 / Sun-synchronous, 700 km, 38.28 deg inclination
- PakTES-1A (Pakistan Technology Evaluation Satellite-1A)Extended operations
Launched 2018-07-09 / Sun-synchronous, around 600-610 km
- Badr-BEnded
Launched 2001-12-10 / Sun-synchronous, about 986 x 1014 km, 99.7 deg
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Launched 2025-01-17 / Sun-synchronous
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Launched 2026-02-12 / Sun-synchronous
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Launched 2026-04-25 / Sun-synchronous
Manufactures
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Micro / Discontinued
Operator pricingPricing not publicly listed by operator -
small satellite / Operational
Operator pricingPricing not publicly listed by operator -
Mini / Demonstration
Operator pricingPricing not publicly listed by operator
- [1]About Us - SUPARCOagency doc2026-06-20Official agency page; mandate and structural overview
- [2]SUPARCO - Wikipediacommunity2026-06-20Founding (1961 committee, 1981 independent commission), HQ Islamabad, chairman Muhammad Yusuf Khan (2023), full satellite mission list
- [3]PRSS-1 - Wikipediacommunity2026-06-202.5 m PAN optical, 700 km SSO 38.28 deg incl, July 9 2018, LM-2C, built by DFH/CAST China; natural resource monitoring, CPEC monitoring
- [4]PakTES-1A - SUPARCO officialagency doc2026-06-20300 kg, 610 km SSO, EO optical payload, co-launched with PRSS-1 July 9 2018 LM-2C; indigenously designed by SUPARCO
- [5]Badr-B - eoPortalcommunity2026-06-2068.5 kg, 1010 km SSO 99.64 deg, Dec 10 2001 Zenit-2 Baikonur, decommissioned 2012; gravity gradient stabilised; EO imaging payload
- [6]CGWIC PRSC-EO1 launch January 2025agency doc2026-06-20Launch provider; PRSC-EO1 Jan 17 2025, LM-2D, Jiuquan; first indigenously built electro-optical EO satellite
- [7]SpaceNews: China launches PRSC-EO3 for Pakistan - April 2026third party2026-06-20PRSC-EO3 April 25 2026 LM-6 Taiyuan; completes 3-sat EO constellation; AI onboard processing
- [8]ARY News: Budget 2024-25 Rs65.6 billion proposed for SUPARCOthird party2026-06-20FY2024-25 proposed budget Rs65.6B
- [9]Pakistan Today: Rs24 billion SUPARCO development budget FY2025-26third party2026-06-20FY2025-26 development Rs24B; optical RS satellite, lunar, manned mission programs
How to cite this page
Plain text
Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission. EO-Atlas, SpectraWorks B.V. https://eo-atlas.org/companies/suparco (CC BY 4.0)
BibTeX
@misc{eoatlas:companies:suparco,
title = {Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission},
author = {{EO-Atlas}},
publisher = {SpectraWorks B.V.},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
url = {https://eo-atlas.org/companies/suparco}
}