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AEROS MH-1
The AEROS MH-1 is a Portuguese nanosatellite that is currently orbiting Earth at an altitude of around 510 km. Launched on 4 March 2024 from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, it is Portugal's second ever satellite, after the PoSAT-1. Its purpose is ocean mapping and observation, with particular interest in the Portuguese exclusive economic zone in the Atlantic Ocean. Background and function The AEROS MH-1 was launched to map and observe the oceans of planet Earth, with particular interest in the Atlantic Ocean, since the Portuguese Exclusive Economic Zone is located there. It was Portugal's second ever satellite, second only to 1993's PoSAT-1, and its meant to be the first step towards making Portugal “a space nation by the end of the 2020s”. Work on the satellite began in 2020 and it represents an investment of 2.78 million euros, co-financed by 1.88 million euros from the European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF). Its name is a homage to Manuel Heitor, for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CubeSat
A CubeSat is a class of small satellite with a form factor of cubes. CubeSats have a mass of no more than per unit,, url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5418c831e4b0fa4ecac1bacd/t/5f24997b6deea10cc52bb016/1596234122437/CDS+REV14+2020-07-31+DRAFT.pdf , title=Cubesat Design Specification , publisher=California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly SLO , year=2020 , location=San Luis Obispo , pages=12 and often use commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for their electronics and structure. CubeSats are deployed into orbit from the International Space Station, or launched as secondary payloads on a launch vehicle. , more than 2,300 CubeSats have been launched. In 1999, California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) professor Jordi Puig-Suari and Bob Twiggs, a professor at Stanford University Space Systems Development Laboratory, developed the CubeSat specifications to promote and develop the skills necessary for the design, manufacture, and testing of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Regional Development Fund
The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) is one of the European Structural and Investment Funds allocated by the European Union. Its purpose is to transfer money from richer regions (not countries), and invest it in the infrastructure and services of underdeveloped regions. This will allow those regions to start attracting private sector investments, and create jobs on their own. History During the 1960s, the European Commission occasionally tried to establish a regional fund, but only Italy ever supported it. Britain made it an issue for its accession in 1973, and pushed for its creation at the 1972 summit in Paris. Britain was going to be a large contributor to the CAP and the EEC budget, and sought to offset this deficit by having the ERDF established. They would then be able to show their public some tangible benefits of EEC membership. The ERDF was set to be running by 1973, but the 1973 oil crisis delayed it, and it was only established in 1975 under considerable Brit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satellites Orbiting Earth
A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scientific research, and Earth observation. Additional military uses are reconnaissance, early warning, signals intelligence and, potentially, weapon delivery. Other satellites include the final rocket stages that place satellites in orbit and formerly useful satellites that later become defunct. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs). Most satellites also have a method of communication to ground stations, called transponders. Many satellites use a standardized bus to save cost and work, the most popular of which are small CubeSats. Similar satellites can work together as groups, forming constellations. Becau ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Program Of Portugal
Space is a three-dimensional continuum containing positions and directions. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions. Modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum known as '' spacetime''. The concept of space is considered to be of fundamental importance to an understanding of the physical universe. However, disagreement continues between philosophers over whether it is itself an entity, a relationship between entities, or part of a conceptual framework. In the 19th and 20th centuries mathematicians began to examine geometries that are non-Euclidean, in which space is conceived as '' curved'', rather than '' flat'', as in the Euclidean space. According to Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity, space around gravitational fields deviates from Euclidean space. Experimental tests of general relativity have confirmed that non-Euclidean geometries provide a better m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portugal Space
Portugal Space ( Portuguese: ''Agência Espacial Portuguesa'') is the Portuguese space agency created by the Portuguese government in collaboration with the regional government of the Azores in 2019. It is headquartered at Santa Maria Island, in the Azores, Portugal. The agency succeeds the Space Office of the Foundation for Science and Technology. Objectives Its objectives are to promote and implement the "Portugal Space 2030". Strategy to articulate the management of the various national programs linked to Space. PT Space is responsible for ensuring the regular publication of the Portuguese Space Catalogue. The agency focuses on Earth observation and the small satellite industry in addition to the creation of a space port on Santa Maria Island. Overall the agency will focus on how space can be used to solve problems on the ground. The National Space Agency coordinates Portuguese participation in the European Space Agency (ESA) and also advises the Portuguese government on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Azores
The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atlantic Ocean, about west of Lisbon, about northwest of Morocco, about southeast of Newfoundland, Canada, and the same distance southwest of Cork, Ireland. Its main industries are agriculture, dairy farming, livestock, fishing, and tourism, which has become a major service activity in the region. In the 20th century and to some extent into the 21st, they have served as a waypoint for refueling aircraft flying between Europe and North America. The government of the Azores employs a large percentage of the population directly or indirectly in the service and tertiary sectors. The largest city of the Azores is Ponta Delgada. The culture, dialect, cuisine, and traditions of the Azorean islands vary considerably, because these remote island ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Santa Maria Island
Santa Maria (; Portuguese language, Potuguese and Spanish language, Spanish for 'Saint Mary') is an island in the Eastern Group, Azores, eastern group of the Azores archipelago (south of the island of São Miguel Island, São Miguel) and the southernmost island in the Azores. The island is known for its white sand beaches, distinctive chimneys, and dry warm weather. History The first records of a group of islands in the Atlantic (aside from the legends of Atlantis) came from the voyages of Portuguese sailors during the reigns of Dinis of Portugal, King Denis (1279–1325) and his successor Afonso IV of Portugal, King Afonso IV (1325–1357). These were unsubstantiated accounts and unofficial, until 1427 when navigator Diogo de Silves found the island of Santa Maria (at that time referred to on nautical charts as ''Ilha dos Lobos'' or ''Ilha do Ovo'') during his journey to Madeira. Myth tells that on the day of the island's discovery, Gonçalo Velho Cabral and his crew were ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), European Space Agency, ESA (Europe), JAXA (Japan), and Canadian Space Agency, CSA (Canada). As the largest space station ever constructed, it primarily serves as a platform for conducting scientific experiments in microgravity and studying the space environment. The station is divided into two main sections: the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS), developed by Roscosmos, and the US Orbital Segment (USOS), built by NASA, ESA, JAXA, and CSA. A striking feature of the ISS is the Integrated Truss Structure, which connect the station’s vast system of solar panels and Spacecraft thermal control, radiators to its pressurized modules. These modules support diverse functions, including scientific research, crew habitation, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pacific Time Zone
The Pacific Time Zone (PT) is a time zone encompassing parts of western Canada, the western United States, and western Mexico. Places in this zone observe standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC−08:00). During daylight saving time, a time offset of UTC−07:00 is used. In the United States and Canada, this time zone is generically called the Pacific Time Zone. Specifically, time in this zone is referred to as Pacific Standard Time (PST) when standard time is being observed (early November to mid-March), and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) when daylight saving time (mid-March to early November) is being observed. In Mexico, the corresponding time zone is known as the ''Zona Noroeste'' (Northwest Zone) and observes the same daylight saving schedule as the United States and Canada. The largest city in the Pacific Time Zone is Los Angeles, whose metropolitan area is also the largest in the time zone. The zone is two hours ahead of the Ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ministry Of Science, Technology And Higher Education
The Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education ( or ''MCTES'') was a Portuguese government ministry dedicated to the design, development, execution and assessment of the science, technology and higher education national policy. Its official address was the Palácio das Laranjeiras in Lisbon. The rest of the education system fell within the scope of the Ministry of Education. Its last minister was Elvira Fortunato, aided by Pedro Nuno Teixeira as secretary of State of Higher Education. Powers The MCTES' main powers are creating, executing and assessing the science, technology and higher education national policy, but it has many other powers, among them, governing the General Directorate of Higher Education (''Direção-Geral do Ensino Superior''), tutelage over the public higher education institutions, and tutelage and oversight over the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and the Macau Scientific and Cultural Centre. The MCTES co-governs (with other Minis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manuel Heitor
Manuel Frederico Tojal de Valsassina Heitor (born 1958) is a Portuguese politician who served as Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education in the government of Prime Minister António Costa until 30 March 2022 when he was succeeded by Elvira Fortunato. Early life and education Heitor graduated with a PhD in mechanical engineering from Imperial College London, and did a post-doctoral at the University of California, San Diego. Career Political career From March 2005 to June 2011, Heitor served as the secretary of state for science, technology and higher education under minister Mariano Gago in the government of Prime Minister José Sócrates. During his time as minister, Heitor notably announced plans in 2018 to build an international launch pad for small satellites on Santa Maria Island and agreed with China to set up a joint research centre to make satellites on the mainland. When Portugal held the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
