News Mails - 2015

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ASIA-PACIFIC REGIONAL SPACE AGENCY FORUM (APRSAF)
News Mail No. 126 Feb/25/2015
http://www.aprsaf.org/
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- * CONTENTS

• 1. News on APRSAF: APRSAF-22 publication
• 2. News on APRSAF: APRSAF-21 report at UNCOPUOS
• 3. News on APRSAF: Interviews at APRSAF-21
• 4. Event Calendar
• 5. Brazilian satellite deployed from Kibo
• 6. LAPAN agreed to cooperate with LIPI in testing LAPAN-A3
• 7. ALOS-2/CIRC observation data open to the public
• 8. 6th UN-SPIDER RSO meeting concluded

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* 1. News on APRSAF: APRSAF-22 publication
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The 22nd session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-22) will be held in Bali, Indonesia, from December 1 to 4, 2015 (TBD). The website for APRSAF-22 is now open and provides access to a flyer created by the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN), Indonesia, one of the event organizers. We welcome you to forward this information to anyone who may be interested in joining the session.
http://www.aprsaf.org/annual_meetings/aprsaf22/meeting_details.php

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* 2. News on APRSAF: APRSAF-21 report at UNCOPUOS
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One of the organizers of APRSAF-21, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan(MEXT), presented a report on the event at the 52nd session of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of UNCOPUOS in February 2015. The presentation file of the APRSAF-21 report and other presentations delivered at the 52nd session are available here:
http://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/COPUOS/stsc/2015/presentations.html

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* 3. News on APRSAF: Interviews at APRSAF-21
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As a follow-up to the two interviews introduced in our previous issue, News Mail No. 125, we are happy to announce that two more articles are now available at the URLs below.

- On the Sentinel Asia success story, with Dr. Renato U. Solidum, Jr., Director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), Philippines (SAWG)
http://www.aprsaf.org/interviews_features/interviews_2015/interviews03.php

- On satellite development in Indonesia and ASEAN countries, with Robertus Heru Triharjanto, Senior Researcher, Center for Satellite Technology, the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN), Indonesia (STWG)
http://www.aprsaf.org/interviews_features/interviews_2015/interviews04.php

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* 4. Event Calendar
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- Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR)
(14-18 Mar 2015, Sendai, Japan)
http://www.wcdrr.org/home

- Joint Conference 30th ISTS, 34th IEPC & 6th NSAT
(4-10 July 2015, Kobe, Japan)
http://www.ists.or.jp/2015/

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* 5. Brazilian satellite deployed from Kibo
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On February 5, 2015, a Brazilian microsatellite, AESP-14, was deployed from the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) "Kibo" of the International Space Station. This deployment was performed by the JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-SSOD) as part of its third series of releases (the 10th satellite overall), while the microsatellite was among the sixth series of satellites deployed from Kibo (the 56th satellite overall). The deployment was conducted in accordance with the framework agreement for the paid utilization of Kibo.

References:
- JAXA ISS/Kibo News
http://iss.jaxa.jp/en/kiboexp/news/150205_aesp14.html
- AESP-14, Technological Institute of Aeronautics of Brazil
http://www.aer.ita.br/~aesp14/

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* 6. LAPAN agreed to cooperate with LIPI in testing LAPAN-A3
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On December 22, 2014, Prof. Dr. Thomas Djamaluddin, Chairman, the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN), Indonesia, agreed to cooperate with Prof. Dr. Ir. Iskandar Zulkarnain, Chairman, the Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI), and Dr. R. Harry Arjadi, Head of the Quality System and Testing Technology Research Center (P2SMTP-LIPI), to test a currently developing technology demonstration small satellite, LAPAN-A3. Under this agreement, some tests of LAPAN-A3, including the radio system and electromagnetic compatibility test and the satellite and payloads vibration test, made use of P2SMTP's facilities.

According to Prof. Dr. Djamaluddin, LAPAN-A3 will have a mass of 50 kg, and LAPAN-A4 and LAPAN-A5, which are under development, will have a mass of approximately 150 kg. In addition, a 500-kg class satellite will be developed by an Indonesian consortium in the future. Prof. Dr. Djamaluddin insisted that satellite development within the country would enable LAPAN to share the existing facilities in other organizations, which would improve the institute's budget efficiency.

Reference:
- LAPAN News (in Indonesian)
http://www.lapan.go.id/index.php/subblog/readprint/1104Satelit-Lapan-A3/berita

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* 7. ALOS-2/CIRC observation data open to the public
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The Japanese Advanced Land Observing Satellite-2 (ALOS-2), named DAICHI-2, was launched in May 2014. A Compact Infrared Camera (CIRC) is one of the payloads of ALOS-2, an infrared sensor primarily intended for detecting forest fires, which present a serious problem for countries in Southeast Asia. After the calibration and validation of ALOS-2/CIRC, all the data is now avaliable from the CIRC observation data search in accordance with its data policy. For details, please visit the following website:
http://circgs.tksc.jaxa.jp/news/alos-2_circ_data/index_e.html

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* 8. 6th UN-SPIDER RSO meeting concluded
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On February 5 and 6, 2015, the 6th meeting of UN-SPIDER Regional Support Offices (RSOs) was held in Vienna, Austria. Twelve of the sixteen members, including those in the Asia-Pacific region, participated. The primary aim of the meeting was to review the actions taken in 2014 and develop a joint program for 2015 and beyond. On the occasion, the International Water Management Institute in Sri Lanka signed a memorandum of understanding to become the country's RSO.

Reference:
- UN-SPIDER News
http://www.un-spider.org/news-and-events/news/6th-meeting-un-spider-regional-support-offices-concluded

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Copyright 2015 The APRSAF Secretariat

APRSAF News Mails are distributed to update the readers on
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APRSAF Secretariat
c/o Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
ochanomizu sola city, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku
Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
Tel: +81-50-3362-5880 / Fax: +81-3-5209-3208
E-mail: secretariataprsaf.org
Web: http://www.aprsaf.org
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