Overview
AEB coordinates Brazil's space activities, including satellite development for environmental monitoring (critical for Amazon deforestation tracking), the Alcântara Launch Center — one of the most favourably located launch sites on Earth at 2°S latitude — and efforts to develop indigenous launch capability.
Brazil's equatorial Alcântara site offers even better orbital mechanics advantages than the Guiana Space Centre for GEO launches. However, Brazil has not yet achieved orbital launch — the VLS rocket programme suffered a devastating pad explosion in 2003 that killed 21 technicians. Brazil now partners with the US on commercial use of Alcântara under a Technology Safeguards Agreement signed in 2019.
Quick Facts
| Parameter | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Brazilian Space Agency (Agência Espacial Brasileira) |
| Abbreviation | AEB |
| Country | Brazil |
| Headquarters | Brasília, Brazil |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Head | Luciana Santos (Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation) |
| Budget | ~$0.12B (2025) |
| Staff | ~300 |
| Crewed Capability | No (astronauts fly on partner vehicles) |
| Website | www.gov.br/aeb |
Key Programmes
Alcântara Launch Center
Equatorial launch site at 2°S — potentially the best-located site on Earth for GEO launches. Now open to commercial partners.
CBERS (China-Brazil)
China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite — a long-running joint programme with China for remote sensing, particularly Amazon monitoring.
Amazonia-1
Brazil's first fully domestically developed Earth observation satellite, monitoring deforestation in the Amazon.
SGDC Communications
Geostationary Defence and Strategic Communications Satellite — providing broadband and secure military communications.