Austrian space expert emphasizes Macau’s effort in helping to ‘look into Earth’

Werner Magnes

An expert on the application of space magnetometers, Dr. Werner Magnes, deputy director, Space Research Institute of Austrian Academy of Sciences, reiterated the special nature of “looking into the Earth” of a locally-orchestrated satellite mission.

Magnes has been involved in the design and manufacturing of the magnetic loads of a number of satellites in Europe and the U.S., as well as that of the Macau Science Satellites-1 (MSS-1). He also helps with the processing of associated data.

David Gubbins

When asked to compare his previous projects and MSS-1, the scientist pointed out that the main goal of MSS-1 is to understand the intrinsic magnetic field of the Earth, “looking into the Earth, which is very special,” he described. The scholar is also involved in the China Seismic Satellite Mission project.

“Although it is not so much [related to] the intrinsic field, it concerns the relations between the lithosphere and seismic events, as well as [relevant] interactions and signals that we see at four to five hundred kilometers above the ground,” Magnes explained.

Simon Edward Williams

When asked why artificial satellites are so important to human life, the expert in magnetometers explained that although most people are more familiar with navigation and daily communications – which depend greatly on artificial satellites – the satellites are also used in a variety of scientific scenarios.

“Artificial satellites can help investigate our world and its neighborhood, such as the atmosphere and the solar system,” the expert said. “They also help investigate the near-earth environment and sometimes the exoplanets as well.”

In fact, on many occasions, artificial satellites have played a crucial role in identifying astronomical scenarios, such as solar storms and asteroids, which could cause significant impacts on people’s lives.

“Using artificial satellites in these scientific scenarios is indeed very fascinating,” Magnes concluded.

Anja Strømme

Royal Society fellow ‘surprised’ by MSS-1 progress

“If you had asked me back in May, before the satellite was launched, about how much information we would get from this forum, I would have expected nothing and thought [the team] would still be testing,” Professor David Gubbins, fellow of The Royal Society, said when commenting on the 2nd Macau Space Development Forum held at the Macau University of Science and Technology.

“I don’t think I’m a pessimist, but I do think we’re all quite surprised by the speed and success so far,” he added as he reviewed the progress that MSS-1 has made so far. Another reason for his surprise is that “previous satellites have taken longer.”

Zhang Keke

“Although it has only been two months since accurate data has come in, it looks very promising,” Gubbins said with regards to the Macau Science Satellites-1 (MSS-1) mission.

Explaining that his main interest is in the internal magnetic field of the Earth as well as the magnetization of the rocks and the core field, he revealed that the scientific community finds separating the two areas important. In order to achieve this, “high-resolution measurement is required,” he said.

MSS-1 was designed to study the fading magnetic field in the South Atlantic, so it revolves across time zones, in contrast to the polar routes usually taken by other satellites. This will help collect a wider range of data for scientific use.

Macau is closely connected to marine exploration due to its coastal location. Describing this, the expert said the MSS-1 data will complement historical data collected by sailors, to a much more accurate level. “Ancient data may be accurate to a quarter of a degree, but MSS-1 data can be to a sixtieth of a degree or even smaller,” Gubbins highlighted, adding that MSS-1 data will help show how the magnetic field has changed, among other meaningful applications. MSS-1 data will also help improve future magnetic detections on cellphones, he previewed.

Australian geophysicist compliments MSS-1’s multidisciplinary nature

The Macau Science Satellites-1 (MSS-1), being multidisciplinary, will indeed be helpful to a wide range of scientists and non-scientists, Associate Professor Simon Edward Williams, geophysicist at University of Tasmania, said on the sidelines of the 2nd Macau Space Development Forum held at the Macau University of Science and Technology.

The geophysicist emphasized that many people from a variety of disciplines were involved in the MSS-1 project. “The key thing in this kind of project is that it’s very hard to find all those kinds of people in one place. This kind of project requires resources and expertise on an international scale,” he said. “One of the things that makes it so interesting is that we all have our own specializations, but it gets so inspiring as we interact with experts from different fields in the same project.”

Focusing scientifically on the lithosphere – the peripheral rocky part of Earth – the geophysicist explained that in order to conduct his research, he needs data on the magnetic field. For most of his career, he recalled, he has relied on data collected by aircraft and ships. However, the shortcoming of this method is that a large area of the Earth is not covered and data collection takes a long time.

The advantage of using artificial satellites, such as the MSS-1, in data collection is that the entire surface of the planet will be covered and the process can be expedited. “They give us a more holistic picture of what’s [happening in] the whole planet at a uniform resolution for us to work on a global scale,” he explained.

Echoing fellows at the forum, Williams agreed that MSS-1 will help fill gaps in the picture in his field.

ESA expert trusts MSS-1’s potential success

The Macau Science Satellites-1 (MSS-1) will become as successful as the Swarm system that she leads at the European Space Agency (ESA), Dr Anja Strømme, Swarm Mission Manager at the Agency and ionospheric physicist, said.

Swarm is the name of a constellation of three satellites that the expert is managing.

Her opinion is that not only is MSS-1 is well placed in space, but the team monitoring it in Macau is working shoulder to shoulder with both the Swarm and international communities.

Another important factor is that data collected by the Chinese system must be made available to interested users, and users must be encouraged to access these data, which should be gathered to solve problems on a global scale. Based on this, the scientist believes that MSS-1 has been set on the path towards success.

What is more important is that MSS-1 and Swarm will complement each other on an international scale. A critical factor is that the two systems circumnavigate the Earth in different orbits, with MSS-1 being able to cover all different time zones around the globe, recording local time in a much better fashion. “They are doing very good things in different ways,” the expert said.

Further explaining the two projects, both Swarm and MSS-1 study the complex magnetic field of the Earth, Strømme advised, adding that both systems are installed with complicated magnetometers for calibration and collection of extremely accurate data.

The difference, meanwhile, is that Swarm is carrying some plasma instruments to measure iron velocities as well as density and temperature of plasma. Another difference concerns the payloads of the two systems. In addition, the Swarm is a system comprising three satellites, while MSS-1 comes in a pair. These types of artificial satellites are professionally referred to as a constellation. Their orbits are also different, Strømme added.

MUST space scientist compliments MSS-1 for drawing limelight to China

The Macau Science Satellites-1 (MSS-1) has attracted the global focus in space science to Macau SAR and China, Chair Professor Keke Zhang, Associate Vice President of Macau University of Science and Technology (M.U.S.T.), Dean of Macau Institute of Space Technology and Application and the Chief Scientist of Macau Science Satellites-1 said.

It is delightful to see that the 2nd Macau Space Development Forum has attracted nearly 400 participants, Zhang noted, acknowledging this embodied the world’s consensus on the significance of the satellite mission.

Adding that he was very much moved by the outcome, he pointed out that MSS-1 has put Macau on the global scientific stage. A scientist from the western part of the world, he recalled, commentated that the global limelight is back on China because of MSS-1. Zhang also recalled the scientist describing how, over 1,000 years ago, China invented the compass, drawing a connection between the two accomplishments, which are both related to the planet’s magnetic field.

“This is not only a scientific achievement, but also a representation of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” Zhang described.

Earlier, The Royal Society held a seminar on MSS-1. Zhang said that it was unprecedented for the British entity to organize such a seminar for a Chinese artificial satellite. “It gathered much feedback,” Zhang said.

The satellite will also foster international collaboration, Zhang said, because he will be in Italy in December representing Macau  as part of the Chinese delegation to discuss partnerships related to MSS-1.

Zhang disclosed that preliminary fruits have been seen already. For example, a simple model of the Earth’s magnetic field has been formed. Environmental research on the space of the planet was also conducted.

On MSS-1’s future, the scholar said it will be used to understand the nature of the Earth’s geodynamo and the generation of the planet’s magnetic field, as well as the magnetic structure of both the land and seas.

Data gathered will also be used to help enhance applications related to the planet’s magnetic field, such as finetuning magnetic functions on cellphones. The research team will attempt to optimize the formation of the model of the Earth’s magnetic field so that the knowledge can be applied in economic and commercial arenas.

Agreements with 18 research entities have been signed on exchange and research of data collected by MSS-1.