Azerbaijan has reached a new milestone in its space journey with the successful launch of the country’s first-ever satellite designed and built by school students. The PocketQube satellite, created by 7th-9th grade students under the SPACE Academy of Azercosmos, was launched into orbit aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.

Symbolically this honoured event was dedicated to the 5th anniversary of Azerbaijan’s Victory in a Karabakh War, the satellite represents a powerful blend of patriotism, youth innovation, and the nation’s growing technological ambition.

This project, implemented by SPACE Academy in a partnership with IDEIA Space, became a historic milestone for the country’s education and innovation ecosystem. A total of 672 schoolchildren representing 41 secondary schools across Azerbaijan participated in the program marking one of the largest school-level space initiatives in the region.

“By giving students the chance to design, test, and launch real space hardware, we are building the next generation of space scientists, engineers, and thinkers.” said Dunay Badirkhanov, Chair of the Board(a/g) of Azercosmos. SPACE Academy was created to open the cosmos to the youth. Today, these children reached the orbit not only with a satellite, but with their dreams. Their success proves that Azerbaijan’s investment in education is transforming into real technological achievements.

The students, selected from schools across the country, spent months learning space engineering fundamentals, experimenting with components, running simulations, and assembling the PocketQube satellite under expert mentorship. The project became a cornerstone of Azerbaijan’s growing STEAM ecosystem and marks the first time that such a hands-on satellite initiative has been completed entirely by schoolchildren.

The satellite will conduct basic in-orbit experiments, collect telemetry data, and serve as an educational platform for students to continue learning about satellite operations after launch.

The launch of PocketQube is a part of Azercosmos’ broader strategy to nurture local talent, inspire young innovators, and build a sustainable national space ecosystem.

Other posts by :

1. Moody’s upgrades Eutelsat’s debt rating
2. Rivada Space Networks wins spectrum dispute
3. Will we take an AI bubble bath?
4. Eutelsat shareholders upset over Rights Issue
5. Amazon Leo satellites en route to French Guiana
6. Deutsche Bank reveals targets for AST SpaceMobile
7. AST SpaceMobile boss outlines benefits
8. Report: LEO build-out accelerates
9. Germany outlines space commitment

Categories: Press Releases

Tags: Azerbaijan, Azercosmos, Space