Filipino researchers appear to have dominated space exploration after winning first prize in the sixth Space Mission Idea Contest (MIC6), besting research topics from different countries during the 7th University Space Engineering Consortium-Global (UNISEC-Global) Meeting in Japan.
The researchers from DOST-Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI) and University of the Philippines Diliman (UP Diliman) won first place in the IVA-replaceable Small Exposed Experiment Platform (iSEEP) category for their entry “Spectrum Monitoring from Space with i-SEEP (SMoSiS) – Capturing and Mapping the Digital Divide from Space through Radio Frequency Spectrum Measurements.”
The MIC is an avenue for people interested in space research to introduce creative ideas on payloads for the International Space Station (ISS) platform. It also introduces new possibilities on space exploration research and technologies.
One of the researchers Dr. Joel Joseph S. Marciano Jr., the newly conferred Director-General of the Philippine Space Agency, said that they were going to pursue the research whether they win or not, but their victory was a pleasant surprise and an added bonus for the whole team, according to an official press statement.
“Our expectation was ‘let’s just have fun explaining this idea to a big audience’ that this is not your typical science experiment. It’s an experiment for public good, illuminating the state of this infrastructure and connectivity in sharing it openly,” he added.
Placing first in the MIC6 served as one of the highlights for the country since this was the Philippines’ first participation to the said event.
The authors of the research are Mar De Guzman, Calvin Artemies Hilario, Dr. Joel Joseph Marciano, Jr., and Genedyn Mendoza.
When asked about the projected uses of mapped data from radio frequency measurements, Dr. Marciano said, “It’s really putting this kind of information in people’s hands, we don’t have all the possible uses of the data. They might correlate it with something, but for us we want to correlate it with night lights, economic activity, household income… where are the unserved and underserved populations.”
“Spectrum Monitoring from Space with i-SEEP (SMoSiS)” aims to provide measurements of RF spectrum occupancy on earth to detect presence/lack of telecommunication and broadcast services.
The processed SMoSiS spectrum data will help determine unserved and “under-served” areas, detection of anomalies, including the disruption and subsequent recovery of wireless technology services during disasters. SMoSiS also studies the utilization of the radio spectrum towards better planning, management and regulation of this vital resource in support of fulfilling Sustainable Development Goal -10 (Reduced Inequalities).
The team intends for SMoSiS to be the first step to having an “osmosis” of opportunities in the underprivileged sector.
The international recognition of the Philippines’ achievement in a space mission-related contest serves as an opportunity to become more engaged in showcasing the abilities and potentials the country has in space technology.