The use of satellite-based technology in developing countries

Satellite technology in the areas of remote sensing, communication, and navigation can provide valuable information in a number of areas from business to disaster management to agriculture. There is great potential for such technology to help solve problems in developing countries. Unfortunately, due to lack of funds, expertise, equipment or awareness, developing countries are not using satellite technology to its full potential. This thesis is motivated by a desire to increase and improve the use of satellite-based technology in developing countries. Three Research Questions guide the study. Question 1 is, "How does national development level relate to national space activity?" For this question, national development level is measured by a series of Development Indicators such as Gross Domestic Product. The level of space activity is measured using a Space Participation Metric that is created by the author. Statistical analysis is used to learn if there is any significant difference in the space activity of countries at different development levels. Research Question 2 asks, "What Mission and Management Architectures are developing countries using to apply satellite-based technology to national needs?" The data used to answer this question comes from 90 Space Project Case Studies about satellite-enabled activities in Africa. The information from the Case Studies is organized so that trends can be found in the accomplishments of the projects. Research Question 3 asks, "How does national development level influence the Mission and Management Architectures used by developing countries in satellite-based technology projects?" This question builds on the data from Research Question 2.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2007

Author dc:creator

• Wood, Danielle Renee

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Annalisa L. Weigel.

• Aeronautics and Astronautics.
• Technology and Policy Program.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/46371

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/46371