The UK Space Agency is funding earth monitoring programmes to accelerate the UK EO (Earth Observation) technology.
The funding of £15 million, by the UK Space Agency, will facilitate the research and experimental development of space-based instruments.
The aim is to support a range of environmental services. These include –
- Meteorology
- Climate monitoring
- Environmental management
- Agriculture and urban planning, and
- Improving scientific knowledge
The funding will allow UK to increase the development of UK EO technologies that can fly on satellites in years ahead.
George Freeman MP, Minister of State at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, said, “Earth Observation technology is critical to tackling the fundamental challenges of our age – from monitoring climate change to responding to humanitarian disasters – and so we owe it to the future of our planet to harness the UK’s world-leading skills in this field.”
“This pivotal technology doesn’t stop there and from ensuring the safety of bridges to enabling our farmers get the best from their land, this £15m investment will boost our economy and drive forward our ambition to make the UK a science superpower.”
UK Space Agency Program and technologies
The Earth Observation Technology Programme funding is part of a £400 million package. The funding will help ease UK’s Earth Observation sector.
The Earth Observation Technology Programme was delivered by the Centre for Earth Observation Instrumentation (CEOI).
Harshbir Sangha, Missions and Capabilities Delivery Director at the UK Space Agency, said, “Satellite technology is essential to our daily lives, helping us to monitor climate change and protect our environment, manage our resources, respond to global humanitarian disasters and support sustainable development.”
“This funding will help catalyse investment across the sector to support a range of innovative projects, from developing new sensor technologies to using the data for improved understanding of climate change.”
The £15 million funding will benefit –
- Pathfinder projects of up to £75,000
- Fast Track projects of up to £250,000 and
- Flagship projects of up to £3 million.
Here, Pathfinder and Fast Track open doors for technology development. This includes early-stage research and lab-based experimental hardware.
Flagship projects work on existing tech. This includes testing instruments in relevant environments and airborne demonstration flights.
The release said, “Since 2016 the Earth Observation Technology Programme has provided £20 million in funding across a total of 57 projects. These include a next Generation Synthetic Aperture Radar for Oceanography led by the National Oceanography Centre with Airbus, a Compact Infrared Imager and Radiometer led by the University of Oxford, and a Laser Heterodyne Radiometer led by RAL Space.”
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-space-agency-funding-for-technologies-to-monitor-the-earth
