| Agência Espacial Brasileira | |
 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation |
|
| Formed | 10 February 1994 |
| Preceding agency |
|
| Type | Space agency |
| Headquarters | Brasília, Distrito Federal |
| Official language | Portuguese |
| Administrator | Marco Antonio Chamon[1] |
| Primary spaceport | Alcântara Space Center |
| Owner | Government of Brazil |
| Annual budget | R$180 million / US$45 million (2019)[2] |
| Website | www |
The Brazilian Space Agency (Portuguese: Agência Espacial Brasileira; AEB) is the civilian authority in Brazil responsible for the country's space program. It operates a spaceport at Alcântara, and a rocket launch site at Barreira do Inferno. It is the largest and most prominent space agency in Latin America.
The Brazilian Space Agency is the institutional successor of Brazil's space program, which had been managed by the Brazilian military until its transfer to civilian control on 10 February 1994. It suffered a major setback in 2003, when a rocket explosion killed 21 technicians. Brazil successfully launched its first rocket into space, the VSB-30, on 23 October 2004 from the Alcântara Launch Center; several other successful launches have followed.[3][4][5] Brazil was briefly a partner in the International Space Station, and in 2006, AEB astronaut Marcos Pontes became the first Brazilian and the first native Portuguese-speaker to go into space, when he arrived at the ISS for a week. During his trip, Pontes carried out eight experiments selected by the Brazilian Space Agency, including testing flight dynamics of saw blades in zero gravity environments. In June 2021, the AEB signed the Artemis Accords to the joint exploration of the Moon and Mars from 2024 as part of the Artemis program.[6]
- ^ Marco Antonio Chamon is the new president of the Brazilian Space Agency..
- ^ Milani, Livia Peres (24 October 2019). "Brazil's Space Program: Finally Taking Off?". Wilson Center. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
in 2019, the approved budget was approximately $45 million (R$ 180 million).
- ^ BBC World: Brazil Launches rocket into space BBC News. Retrieved on 2009-07-30.
- ^ Space.com: Brazil completes successful rocket launch Archived 2008-07-24 at the Wayback Machine Space.com. Retrieved on 2009-07-30.
- ^ Herald Tribune: Brazil launches rocket for gravity research International Herald Tribune. Retrieved on 2009-07-30.
- ^ "Brazil Signs Artemis Accords". NASA.gov. 15 June 2021. Archived from the original on 15 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.