The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) is marking its third anniversary this August with a month-long lineup of capacity-building activities.
With the theme “Sama-samang Pagbangon Gamit ang Kaalaman Mula Kalawakan,” the celebration will highlight the crucial role of end-users in harnessing information from space to benefit and empower communities, PhilSA said.
The PhilSA Integrated Network for Space-Enabled Actions towards Sustainability (Pinas) is set to visit Palawan province for the second leg of the project’s pre-implementation workshops in Puerto Princesa City.
The Pinas project envisions communities empowered through the utilization of the full value chain of space data. It is designed to enable various sectors to sustainably access space data based on their needs.
“We will be inviting representatives from the agriculture, DRRM [disaster risk reduction and management], environment conservation, planning, and national security sectors to introduce the potential of space-based technologies in aiding them in the fulfillment of their mandates and daily operations,” said Jamaica Pangasinan, Pinas project leader and PhilSA Space Mission Control and Operations Division (SMCOD) senior science research specialist.
Meanwhile, the public will be invited to the launch and first instalment of the five-part Space Information Infrastructure Capacity Building and Training Program (SIICaP) Data Camp webinar.
Under PhilSA’s Inclusive SSTA Know-how, Utilization, Exchange and Localization Activities, SIICaP aims to promote and enhance understanding of space information infrastructures and their applications through monthly events.
“The Data Camp will be the second series of SIICaP after Lakbay Kalawakan. It will now focus on how engineers and scientists use open-source technologies to process geospatial datasets,” said Engr. Cyrus Nikko Pante, SIICaP project leader and PhilSA Information Technology Officer I.
Pante added that participants will get to learn the technologies through interactive lectures and will have the opportunity to use and showcase them in a culmination activity that will coincide with the World Space Week.
Also lined up is the Ground and Amateur Radio Operation for Satellite Communication Training Session of the Space Infrastructure, Know-How, and Applications Acceleration through Promotion and Training (Sikap+), which was launched in May.
The course is designed for satellite ground operators, amateur radio operators, and other interested participants from local institutions and the Asean region.
It aims to equip the participants with knowledge and skills to use amateur radio kits for satellite and terrestrial communications.
Shielo Muta, Sikap+ project leader and Chief of PhilSA Space Mission Control and Operations Division (SMCOD), said, “This project envisions to promote regional cooperation among neighboring Asian nations in satellite and ground station operations that will develop a more efficient and sustainable effort in maximizing the use of space infrastructures.”
At the same time, PhilSA continues to sustain the country’s satellite advancement program by engaging local private industries in developing the upstream sector.
The Integrated Development of a Unified Standard 3U System (InDUS3US) project is set to conduct this month a Qualification Status Review, a milestone in the small satellite being developed by PhilSA with private companies in the country.
Since May, PhilSA has been providing theoretical and hands-on training to engineers from space-adjacent industries. Through these activities, InDUS3US aims to jumpstart a space sector in the country to support future local space technology activities.
“InDUS3US will develop a 3U-sized cube satellite for Earth imaging to help with change and agricultural monitoring as well as disaster response management. But more importantly, this project provides first-hand experience to industry engineers as they work side by side with PhilSA engineers in this project,” said Engr. John Leur Labrador, InDUS3US project leader and PhilSA Spacecraft Mechanical and Autonomous Systems Development Division chief.
The Philippine Space Act that was signed on August 8, 2021, created PhilSA as the central government agency addressing all national issues and activities related to space science and technology applications.
Image credits: PhilSA image