Weekly Report - 23 October 2014 (WR-14-42)

Argentina has become the first Latin American country to build and launch its own geostationary satellite. The Arsat 1, built by the state-run firm Investigaciones Aplicadas (Invap), was launched from the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana on 19 October. Take-off was broadcast live on television and radio across Argentina, with President Cristina Fernández apparently supervising the launch from the Casa Rosada. The satellite cost around US$270m, but should eventually save Argentina US$25m a year in rental fees to foreign states for telecommunication services. As Fernández’s stage management of the event showed, in terms of political capital, the return was immediate.