The Pakistan Mission Control Center (Call sign:PMCC) () is a separate command and control and separate mission control center at the Suparco Headquarters in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. The PMCC manages and controls the satellite programme of Pakistan, and controls the nation's unmanned

space programme A space program is an organized effort by a government or a company with a goal related to outer space. Lists of space programs include: * List of government space agencies * List of private spaceflight companies * List of human spaceflight prog ...

Historical review

The facility came into existence in 1990 with the technical support of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. Since 1990, Pakistan had been participating in an international and multinational humanitarian programme for satellite–aided

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

, the

International Cospas-Sarsat Programme The International Cospas-Sarsat Programme is a satellite-aided search and rescue (SAR) initiative. It is organized as a treaty-based, nonprofit, intergovernmental, humanitarian cooperative of 45 nations and agencies (see infobox). It is dedi ...

. In 1990, the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...

accorded approval for Suparco's participation in the Cospas program as ground segment provider and lead space station with close coordination with the Soviet Union. Over the years, the mission control center had equipped itself with advanced technology and is capable of controlling the capable COSPAS-SARSAT satellites.

Operational activities

The PMCC is a major facility to hold the space programme activities and to control the satellite programme. On November 10-November 12, 2009 at 0500 - 1300 UTC, Suparco successfully completed commissioning and telecommunication test of the Pakistan Mission Control Center under the officials of the COSPAS-SARSAT International Program, for the support of Search and Rescue using satellite aided tracking technology. As of current, the PMCC is a recognized and major facility of the International COSPAS-SARSAT Program.

References

{{authority control International research institutes Research institutes in Pakistan 1990 establishments in Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission Science and technology in Pakistan Canada–Pakistan relations France–Pakistan relations Pakistan–Soviet Union relations Pakistan federal departments and agencies SUPARCO facilities