The website of the Ecuadorian civilian space agency (EXA), shows a timer which indicates the time remaining until the NEE-02 Krysaor satellite is launched into space. According to the countdown, until noon yesterday, this new nanosatellite will be in space in 76 days, 13 hours and 50 minutes.
On the other hand, the NEE-01 Pegasus, twin of Krysaor, was declared missing by EXA, once the space agency reported in a statement not having been able to recover its signal and that the company Seguros Equinoccial “has compensated the loss of Pegasus completely and in a very short time”.
The document also shows that the Ecuadorian State contributed with 700,000 dollars for the launch, insurance, logistics and both satellites certification tests.
EXA indicates that NEE-02 Krysaor was built after Pegasus, in order to serve as backup “in case of an event, even before the launch”.
However, the past May 23, plans had to change because Pegasus suffered a lateral collision with the remains of a Russian rocket that was launched in 1985, and, while EXA scientists were able to locate its position and verify that its protective armor withstood the impact, it has been impossible to recover its signal.
