Country dossier · BRA

Brazil

Advanced space-faring nation

A sourced snapshot of Brazil's posture in space — capability, institutions, orbital assets, law and people. Every figure carries its primary source; gaps are shown honestly, never filled with invented data.

Open Brazil in the interactive workspace →

Capability tier

Advanced space-faring nation

Launches to orbit from its own territory: noLaunch sites on record: 2Nationals who have flown: 1

Source: ALL IN SPACE capability ladder · see methodology

Space agency

Agência Espacial Brasileira (AEB)

National space agency · established 1994 · two-source verified

Source: UNOOSA · Worldwide Space Agencies directory

Satellites (owner state)

27

Counted from the GCAT May 2026 snapshot. The interactive workspace shows a live CelesTrak figure, which uses different owner-attribution rules and will differ.

Source: GCAT · General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (J. McDowell) · May 2026 snapshot

Ground stations

11

Source: ALL IN SPACE curated ground-station dataset (operator-sourced)

Space budget

$350M

Emerging spender · 2026 · Brazilian Space Agency

Source: Agência Espacial Brasileira

National strategy

Programa Nacional de Atividades Espaciais (PNAE) 2022-2031 + Programa Estrategico de Sistemas Espaciais (PESE) (2021)

Ten-year programme by AEB across society, autonomy and industry axes, complemented by the defence-led PESE

Source: Published national space strategies and policies

International space law

InstrumentStatus
Outer Space Treaty 1967Ratified
Rescue Agreement 1968Ratified
Liability Convention 1972Ratified
Registration Convention 1975Ratified
Moon Agreement 1979Not a party
Artemis Accords 2020Signatory (2021-06-15)

Source: Status of international agreements relating to activities in outer space (1 January 2026)

Launch sites

  • Centro de Lancamento de Alcantara (CLA)Brazilian Air Force (FAB) / Brazilian Space Agency (AEB) · Alcantara, Maranhao · suborbital · since 1990
  • Centro de Lancamento da Barreira do Inferno (CLBI)Brazilian Air Force (FAB) · Parnamirim, Rio Grande do Norte · suborbital · since 1965

Source: National launch site roster · ALL IN SPACE compilation

Astronauts

  • Marcos PontesAEB / Roscosmos · first flight 2006 · First Brazilian in space

Source: Astronaut biographies

Milestones

  • 1965First orbital launch from national soil
  • 1994Agência Espacial Brasileira (AEB) established
  • 2006First national in space

Notable missions and contributions

  • CBERS (China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite)
  • Amazonia-1 (First entirely domestic Earth observation satellite, 2021)
  • Alcântara Space Center operations
  • HANBIT-Nano commercial launch attempt from Alcantara (22 Dec 2025) - South Korean firm Innospace's two-stage rocket lifted off carrying 8 payloads in the first commercial orbital launch attempt from the Alcantara Launch Center; the vehicle failed about 33 seconds after liftoff (a first-stage engine seal gas leak) but the launch marked Alcantara's debut as a commercial spaceport (FAILED)