Abu Dhabi Space Enthusiasts Reach for the Stars at Yahsat’s ‘satgames Obstacle Challenge’

Al Yah Satellite Communications Company “Yahsat”, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, hosted a race-to-space Obstacle Challenge for young space and engineering enthusiasts on August 10that Du Forum, Abu Dhabi. 

The event saw teams of three members compete against each other in an effort to assemble a satellite model, mount it on a rocket, and launch it through an obstacle course to safely reach the orbit. The winning team earned themselves a visit to the John F. Kennedy Space Center as part of a five-day all expenses paid trip to Florida. The runners-up went away with a MacBook Air laptop and Samsung S9 smartphone.

The race was centered on mimicking the launch journey of a Yahsat’s most recent satellite, Al Yah 3, into space.

Al Yah 3, an all Ka-band satellite, was designed and built with Emirati engineers leading every stage of the process, in partnership with Orbital ATK, “now called Northrop Grumman”. This launch marks a significant milestone in the company’s vision to become a partner of choice for reliable, innovative and affordable satellite solutions. Al Yah 3 is providing millions of people in under-served and unserved markets with reliable, high-speed satellite broadband services which in turn is enabling the growth of vital economic sectors such healthcare, education and business. Additionally, Al Yah 3’s launch is a milestone in the advancement of UAE’s space and satellite industry.

“The success of the event is a testimony to our community’s growing interest in the UAE’s space and satellite sector. Yahsat’s growth in the satellite communications industry is not only impacting lives leading to socio-economic growth in various countries around the world but it is also solidifying our nation’s influence in this sector.We would like to thank all of the competitors and attendees for joining us at the SatGames.” commented Sulaiman Al Ali, Executive Vice-President for Commercial Services at YahsatGovernment Solutions. 

Yahsat is the first company in the Middle East and Africa to offer multi-purpose Ka-band satellite services and Al Yah 3 is the company’s third and most recent satellite. With Al Yah 3, Yahsat’s commercial Ka-band coverage has extended to an additional 19 African markets reaching 60% of Africa’s population. The satellite also marks Yahsat’s entry into Brazil covering 95% of the country’s population.