Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), the national space agency, was established in 1961 as a Committee and was granted the status of a Commission in 1981.  SUPARCO is mandated to conduct R&D in space science, space technology, and their peaceful applications in the country. It works towards developing indigenous capabilities in space technology and promoting space applications for socio-economic uplift of the country.
SUPARCO’s benchmarks include plans to launch an indigenously developed satellite on 14 August 2011, and the development of Pakistan's first satellite launch vehicle. [10] While the National Defence Complex (NDC) now develops the Hatf-2/Abdali, SUPARCO still operates the Sonmiani Beach Test Flight Range, which hosts test-flights for both the updated Hatf-2/Abdali missiles and the Ghaznavi and Shaheen missiles.