"For Temidayo Oniosun, the story is the same as it ever was: "Space is nothing new in Africa." But the dimensions have changed, said the space scientist and founder of Space in Africa , a think tank in Lagos, Nigeria. During the early space race in the 1960s, African countries played an important role in the Apollo moon missions, Oniosun told DW."
"They hosted critical infrastructure, without which, "the missions wouldn't have been possible." "But nobody talked about that," Oniosun said. "When America sent [NASA astronaut] Neil Armstrong to the moon, it wasn't like, 'This is good for America, and we thank Africa and other regions for their contribution.' But Africa played a role in that. And the reason we tell this story is to provide the context that space isn't a brand new thing in Africa.""
African countries hosted critical ground infrastructure during the 1960s Apollo missions, enabling those missions' success though that contribution remained largely unacknowledged. In recent decades African nations have progressed from hosting to building, owning, designing and launching satellites tailored to continental needs. Space technology is applied pragmatically to provide connectivity, monitor floods and droughts, and improve agricultural yields. Much satellite data is freely available, but many programs from Europe and elsewhere do not cater to specific equatorial requirements. Consequently, African space activities focus on niche, applied science and technologies that address immediate socioeconomic and environmental challenges.
Read at www.dw.com
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