Al-Rhim Sat: Jordan’s First CubeSat Project Officially Selected by UNOOSA

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) has officially announced the selection of the "Al-Rhim Sat" project among 17 proposals submitted by institutions across 15 countries, making it the first initiative of its kind from Jordan to receive official support from UNOOSA. 

Al-Rhim Sat is a 1U CubeSat currently under development by a group of engineering students from various Jordanian universities. The project is fully funded and managed by Al Hussein Technical University (HTU), and it is currently undergoing its Preliminary Design Review (PDR). The satellite is expected to launch by the end of 2026. 

The project aims to develop Jordan’s first CubeSat using Long Range Low Power (LoRa) radio technology to track endangered wildlife in remote regions of the country. Through this mission, the team also hopes to lay the foundation for future national space projects by empowering local talent and inspiring more students to enter the space sector. 

The project was officially submitted to UNOOSA in response to its call for proposals to launch CubeSats using the Exolaunch EXOpod deployment system. 

The project team is led by Dr. Firas Jarrar, Associate Professor and Head of the Mechanical Engineering Department at HTU, with Eng. Nada Al Khatib from the Electrical Engineering Department serving as Co-Supervisor. The project is coordinated by Diana Al Jbour, an Aerospace Engineering student at Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). The core team includes 12 talented students from HTU and other leading Jordanian universities.

This milestone reflects Jordan’s growing commitment to space exploration and scientific innovation. HTU’s leadership in this initiative reaffirms its mission to deliver hands-on, high-quality technical education and to empower youth through transformative, real-world projects that position Jordan on the global space technology map.