Brazil and China reportedly mark a new stage in space cooperation with the anticipated announcement of a joint meteorological satellite next month at the Sino-Brazilian High-Level Commission for Coordination and Cooperation (Cosban) meeting in Beijing.
“It’s something we’ve never done before,” Marco Antonio Chamon, president of the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), told media. Brazil currently has no meteorological satellites, relying on data from American, European and Japanese satellites for its forecasting models. The new Sino-Brazilian satellite will provide more data generally and on Brazil specifically.
While Chamon cautions that the new satellite “will not work magic,” it will serve to improve Brazilian weather and climate forecasting as climate change drives more severe and dangerous weather phenomena.
[See more: Catastrophic flooding kills dozens in Brazil]
Brazil is also making progress on another joint project with China, the Cbers-6 radar satellite, set to launch in 2028. While previous Sino-Brazilian satellites took still pictures, this smaller, more advanced satellite uses radar.
Greater cooperation between the BRICS nations – led by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – in the space sector looks likely, with ongoing negotiations to share satellite data as well as imagery.
Space will be a major topic of discussion at the Cosban conference from 5-6 June. Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin and Chinese Vice Prime Minister He Lifeng will host the two-day meeting, considered the main mechanism for regular dialogue between the two countries on a diverse array of issues.
