The Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA) Sunday announced the successful launch and orbital insertion of the Egyptian satellite SPNEX, marking a significant scientific milestone and reflecting the country’s progress in space technology.
The satellite has begun transmitting its first signals, according to an EgSA statement.
SPNEX is part of Egypt’s nano-satellite development programme. It demonstrates the ability of Egyptian expertise in implementing complete space systems—from design and manufacturing to assembly, integration, testing, and operational deployment in orbit.
The satellite, developed in cooperation with the Academy of Scientific Research and Technology, serves as a scientific laboratory in space. It specializes in measuring plasma characteristics in the ionosphere and supports studies on solar and magnetic storms. It also supports the building of accurate ionospheric models and contributes to climate research.
SPNEX was entirely developed within the EgSA laboratories starting from early 2022, with all assembly, integration, and testing conducted at the agency’s AIT Centre in the Egyptian Space City.
On 12 December 2025, the Agency’s ground control and reception station successfully received the satellite’s telemetry signals, confirming its stable orbit, operational efficiency, and battery charge levels at approximately 90 percent after solar alignment.
The satellite was launched from the Rong Feng Space Base in northwest China, with all satellite systems, software, and ground control station designed and implemented by Egyptian technical teams.
SPNEX data will soon be made available to researchers at Egyptian universities and research centres to support scientific research and space applications, EgSA announced.
The Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA) was founded on 17 January 2018,[2] succeeding the National Authority for Remote Sensing & Space Sciences (NARSS) as the premier space authority in Egypt. Egyptian space program has initially launched operations in 1960. The EgSA headquarters are housed in the Egyptian Space City, which also houses the African Space Agency (AfSA) headquarters, after Egypt won a bid to the African Union for its hosting in 2019.
The agency operates under the scope of the Egyptian Government and sees many of its executive decisions made at a presidential level. EgSA is currently responsible for satellite launches and monitoring, as well providing a platform for affiliated STEM fields to further develop in Egypt. The agency and its predecessor have administered 13 satellites as of August 2024, with the first one being EgyptSat 1 in 2007, and the most recent being NEXSAT-1 launched on the 3rd of February, 2024.
The Academy of Scientific Research and Technology (ASRT) is the national umbrella for the planning of scientific research activities in Egypt. Established in 19171, it includes the national committees of 20 International Scientific Unions and has 15 specialized Councils for various branches of scientific activities.
The Academy’s members are experts from universities, research centres, institutes and production sectors. The Councils suggest appropriate research projects to be conducted with ASRT to solve some of the problems of these sectors and to meet the national development programmes.
