Space agencies in the UAE and Israel are asking universities and research institutes in the two countries to submit joint research proposals based on data collected from space satellites.
The UAE Space Agency, Israeli Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology and the Israel Space Agency have jointly called for submissions based on data collected from the Israeli Vegetation and Environment Monitoring New Micro Satellite (VENµS), which monitors the environment and vegetation on earth.
Israel and the UAE signed the Abraham Accords peace agreement in August 2020, marking the third such peace deal between Israel and an Arab country. Since the agreement was signed, numerous deals have been struck between the nations for greater cooperation across science, space, technology, industry and business.
“Global collaboration is key to leveraging space to protect our planet. By partnering alongside other leading nations in the space sector, we are contributing to expanding the global base of scientific knowledge to help humanity develop solutions to its greatest challenges,” said Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri, UAE Minister of State for Advanced Technology and Chairwoman of the UAE Space Agency.
The proposals will form part of the Environment Monitoring Joint Research Project, an earth observation programme that collects data using space-based remote sensing, which plays a crucial part in valuable scientific research about our planet. Using various sensors, the method enables monitoring and exploration of different phenomena and fosters better water resources monitoring, precision agriculture, vegetation exploration, land mapping and more.
Orit Farkash-Hacohen, Israel’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, said: “The important space cooperation between Israel and the UAE shows how technology connects nations. The VENµS satellite is helping find solutions to deal with climate change. The joint research will help advance shared issues between the UAE and Israel, including those in the field of agri-tech, climate change and others. I would like to express my gratitude to Minister Al Amiri for the cooperation and shared vision. Governments sign agreements, but it is the people who make the peace. The cooperation which gets underway today is another proof of that.”
The selected research project, which will receive $200,000 of funding from the UAE Space Agency and Israel Space Agency, will leverage big data analytics, informatics, and related techniques to expand humanity’s collective scientific knowledge about earth and how we can live more sustainably. Successful proposals will be selected by a joint UAE-Israel committee, who will choose one project to be funded.
