Russia and Brazil are considering the possibility of conducting joint launches of carrier rockets from a Brazilian space center, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during an official visit of Brazilian President Michel Temer to Moscow.
“We are looking into the possibility of conducting joint space launches from Brazil’s launching site, as well as of constructing small- and medium-lift launch vehicles. We also have ideas on establishing cooperation in remote Earth sensing,” Putin said after his meeting with Temer.
Putin stressed that Russia and Brazil closely cooperate in peaceful space exploration, and recalled that four foreign stations of the Russian global navigation system Glonass are operating in Brazil.
Temer, in his turn, said he gave a positive assessment to construction of the Glonass stations on Brazilian soil, and expressed interest in expanding the network of such stations.
The Brazilian Space Agency operates two launch centers, the Alcântara Launch Center on the northern peninsula of the same name, and the Barreira do Inferno Launch Center, which is used as support to the first one.
Glonass, a global navigation system operated by the Russian Aerospace Forces, consists of 27 satellites, 24 of which are operational. The system allows real-time positioning and speed data for surface, sea and airborne objects around the world.
Currently, there are eight Glonass stations located outside Russia, with four of them in Brazil, three in the Antarctic and one in South Africa.
Sputnik