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RandomFactor writes:

Indonesia's space agency, the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Indonesian: Lembaga Penerbangan dan Antariksa Nasional or LAPAN) is dwarfed by those in nearby Japan, China, and India, but the country is testing and planning for its own launch capability.

In November, Indonesia finally confirmed plans to construct its first spaceport off the coast of Papua, acknowledging that its existing launch site is too risky for large rocket launches because it is too small and in a densely populated area.

The new location on the equator is also ideal as it cuts fuel costs and could potentially draw interest from other countries keen to launch satellites, experts said.

Other sites such as Brazil's Alcântara Launch Center, the ESA's Guiana Space Center and Sriharikota in India already take advantage of their location to provide cheaper launch services.

Indonesia had once planned to have one of its own astronauts flown into orbit on the space shuttle, but those hopes were dashed after the Challenger crash in 1986.

now Lapan is talking to its Russian counterpart about sending one of its astronauts on a future mission - though there are few concrete details so far.

Indonesia has cooperated on technology with counterparts in the US, Germany, Japan and the Ukraine among others over the years.

Of note - in 1976, Indonesia became the first country in the developing world to operate its own domestic satellite system.

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