Since 2018, the second 50-kilogram Earth observation microsatellite of the Philippines has captured over 112,049 images around the world and covered 94.03% or 282,088 km² of the Philippine landmass.
The Iloilo Ground Receiving Station (GRS), the most recent addition to the country's space infrastructure, has successfully communicated with the Diwata-2 microsatellite, thereby furthering the country's long-term objective of expanding its nascent space technology sector.
In its two-year journey, the Diwata-2 microsatellite has captured 32,256 images, including a wide-field camera image of Typhoon Ambo on May 12, 2020, two days before it made landfall in the country when it was still a tropical storm.
Deployed into the 600-km Sun-Synchronous Orbit on October 29, 2018, Diwata-2 is the country’s third satellite sent to space, following the 50-kg micro-satellite Diwata-1 (deployed to space April 27, 2016) and the 1-kg nano-satellite Maya-1 (deployed on June 29, 2018).
Signaling the growth of the country's space program, the Philippines posted another milestone on Monday, October 29, after sending the Diwata-2 micro-satellite into space.
