India to launch Brazilian satellite

BANGALORE: India will launch a Brazilian micro-satellite for atmospheric studies and the two countries will embark on joint research projects in space and atmospheric sciences soon.
On Sunday the two countries signed a framework agreement to this effect. They will further exchange proposals for remote sensing applications, and set up a ground station in Brazil for receiving remote sensing data from ISRO''s remote sensing satellite, Resourcesat-1.
India and Brazil signed the framework agreement at New Delhi for cooperation "in the field of outer space", says an ISRO release.
The agreement was signed by India''s external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha, and Brazil''s minister of external relations Celso Amorim, in the presence of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and the Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Besides the framework agreement, an agreement on the programme of cooperation between the space agencies of the two countries was also signed by ISRO chairman G.Madhavan Nair and Brazilian Space Agency (AEB) president Luiz Bevilacqua.
ISRO and AEB signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in March 2002 to provide an umbrella for cooperation between the two countries in the area of space. Several discussions have been held for identifying areas of mutual interest.
The framework agreement is expected to strengthen the ties already established under the MOU and demonstrate the support of both governments.