Argentine scientists prepare a satellite launch in the US
Chinstraps, goggles and gloves are part of the luggage of 18 technicians and scientists from the National Commission for Space Activities (CONAE), who yesterday traveled to the United States to start a new launch campaign for the SAOCOM 1B satellite, originally planned for March but that had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The members of the Argentine delegation must prepare for their launch to the satellite built in Bariloche, which has been waiting for them since the end of February at the Cape Canaveral space center, and supervise its integration into the Falcon 9 rocket of the US company SpaceX that will put it in orbit in late July.
The technicians carried out a strict quarantine in their homes from the moment they were designated for this mission and were tested in the days prior to the trip that they undertook for Aerolineas Argentinas; In addition, upon arrival in the United States, they began serving another 8-day quarantine in a hotel and must pass two PCR tests (diagnosed by Covid-19) before being able to enter the space center.
The launch, which was delayed because the number of Covid-19 infections in March in Europe jeopardized the availability of earth stations on that continent, is the SpaceX company's first non-US mission since the emergence of the coronavirus outbreak.
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