The Ramon Foundation and the Israel Space Agency in the Ministry of Science and Technology are today issuing a call for scientists, researchers and entrepreneurs to send proposals for experiments to be carried out in space by Eitan Stiva
The Ramon Foundation and the Israel Space Agency at the Ministry of Science and Technology are calling on scientists, researchers and entrepreneurs to send their proposals for experiments, which will be carried out on the International Space Station (subject to NASA's approval) as part of the journey of Eitan Stiva, the second Israeli to fly into space.
The experiments will be selected by an independent scientific and technological committee which consists of senior officials in the fields of academia, industry and government in Israel, and will be headed by Inbal Kreis, a senior official in the Israeli space industry and the director of innovation in the space and missile systems division of the aerospace industry. The mission is led by the Ramon Foundation together with the Israel Space Agency in the Ministry of Science and Technology, which leads the partnership of government ministries in the project.
According to Inbal Kreis, the global space industry is in the process of transition from clear control by government entities to the entry of entrepreneurs, start-up companies and business entities from the private sector. This trend leads to a continuous process of reducing entry barriers and making space technologies more accessible to additional fields and integration into products that concern the day-to-day lives of all of us.
"This mission is a rare opportunity to carry out and promote ground-breaking research in space on a large scale, and allows the Israeli space community quick access to the International Space Station, which has infrastructure for conducting a wide variety of experiments and promoting scientific measures and research. The studies are expected to contribute to strengthening scientific capabilities at the national level, to understanding technological processes, and to improving the quality of life on Earth," Kreis says.
Ran Levana, CEO of the Ramon Foundation explains "Astronaut hours are one of the most precious and rare resources in the space industry, this historic mission to space will allow us to provide an extraordinary opportunity to many entities in Israel to integrate into this industry. In this way, we fulfill the vision of the late Rona Ramon to use space for the benefit of the younger generation in the worlds of education, inspiration, science and technology."
Minister of Science and Technology, Yizhar Shai: "We are at the beginning of a global revolution in space exploration. Within a few years most of the space research will pass from government hands to private hands, and Israel has the potential to be a major player in the developing industry. This mission will significantly reduce the barriers standing in the way of scientists who aspire to conduct experiments in space, accelerate the development processes of the civilian space industry in Israel and bring with it significant opportunities for Israeli entrepreneurs. All this as part of a long-term strategy promoted by the Ministry of Science and Technology, to create a local industry of about 350 companies in the field of civil space, employing about 25 people and raising over half a billion dollars in private investments every year."
As part of the mission, scientific and technological experiments and demonstrations of commercial companies in the fields of communications, astrophysics, remote medicine, agriculture, optics, sensors, robotics, and more are expected to be sent. Carrying out the experiments in this framework will allow Israeli companies to integrate in a shorter period of time in the international space market. This mission will contribute to strengthening Israel's position on the world stage through continuous and long-term space activity.
The Ramon Foundation and the Israel Space Agency at the Ministry of Science and Technology will work to provide Israeli startups and researchers, who will take part in the mission, access to scientific and technological platforms on the International Space Station, as much as possible through collaborations with foreign space agencies that are currently in the initial stages of formation. In addition, the Israel Space Agency in the Ministry of Science and Technology intends to publish during the first quarter of 2021 a call for research in the fields of science and technology to be carried out on the International Space Station. The submission will be open, among other things, to ventures that choose within the framework of the Ramon Fund's calling.
The members of the scientific and technological committee: the chairman of the committee, Mrs. Inbal Kreis, the director of innovation in the Missile and Space Systems Division of the Aerospace Industry, Mr. Avi Blasberger, the director of the Israel Space Agency at the Ministry of Science and Technology, the secretary of the committee, Mr. Eliran Hamo, a doctoral student in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Engineering , Tel Aviv University, Prof. Avishai Eyal, Head of the Laboratory for Optics and Photonics, Head of the Bachelor's Degree Program at the School of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at Tel Aviv University, Prof. Ehud Bacher, Dean of the Faculty of Physics, Astrophysicist, Director of the Asher Space Institute, Technion-Institute Israel Technology, Prof. Orit Shafi, Head of the Bioengineering Track, Member of the Nanotechnology and Brain Research Faculty, Faculty of Engineering, Bar Ilan University, Dr. Esnat Luxenburg, Director of the Medical Technologies, Information and Research Division, Ministry of Health, Dr. Jacob Cohen , chief scientist at the NASA Ames Research Institute and consultant to the Ramon Foundation, Prof. Dan Blumberg, head of the Remote Sensing and Planetary Imaging Laboratory, Vice President for Regional and Industrial Development, Ben Gurion University, Prof. Dror Haretz, faculty member at the Sklar School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University , Head of Research and Innovation at Sheba Tel Hashomer Medical Center, CEO and founder of VBL BIOTECH, and Mr. Tzachi Shanrach, Head of Technology and Market Sectors, Deputy Director of the Innovation Authority.
Want to send an object to the moon?
The Israel Space Agency, in the Ministry of Science and Technology, invites you, the general public, to propose an object for the State of Israel to be sent to the moon as part of the Artemis program, in which NASA will launch the Orion spacecraft into orbit around the moon!
As part of the Artemis 1 mission, in 2021 NASA will launch the "Orion" spacecraft into orbit around the moon without astronauts, to test all the systems and verify their safety before a manned journey. In honor of the start of the exciting journey back to the moon - the Israel Space Agency has the unique right to attach to the journey of the "Orion" spacecraft to the moon and back several symbolic and small items! The objects will be sent to us at the end of the journey to the moon and will be presented to the general public.
The Artemis program includes the development of long-term plans, among which establishing a base on the moon as a base for astronauts to travel deep into the solar system. Among the partners in the program are countries, technology companies and space industries worldwide. Israeli space technology is also expected to play an important role in the mission, with unique space suits made by a company Stamrad The Israeli one that the Israeli Space Agency supports are expected to be used by the astronauts and protect them from radiation.
The Artemis 1 mission, which will be launched by NASA in November 2021, will indeed be without astronauts, but aboard the "Orion" spacecraft will be a doll astronaut named Zohar who will wear the Stemrad suit in order to be able to test the effectiveness of the protection against radiation and ensure the safety of the astronauts in the manned journey ahead.
So what can you offer to send to the moon?
This is where we need your creative minds, so come and tell us what you would send to the moon and back!
Some important highlights for proposals:
- The object could be used for the purpose of education, display to the public, increasing awareness of occupation in space, etc.
- The object should be small, the smaller it is, the greater its chances of being selected. In any case, the dimensions of the object will not exceed 43 cm in height, 50 cm in width and 21 cm in depth.
- The object must be as light as possible. The easier it is, the greater his chances of being elected.
- It is not possible to send an electronic device of any kind, nor an object containing any batteries or liquids.
- It is not possible to send a toxic/dangerous/explosive object of any kind.
- It is not possible to send a fragile object, for example one made of glass.
- Collectibles such as stamps or coins cannot be sent.
The selected objects will be published later on the website and on the New Media pages of the Israel Space Agency.
The proposals must be sent by Monday, January 4.1.2021, 12 at 00:XNUMX.
For details and registration: https://www.space.gov.il/node/131719
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One response
There is and was almost nothing to try in space. There were several experiments of the functioning of the systems in the body of animals and humans under weightlessness conditions, the culmination of which was sending a geriatric astronaut into space decades after he had already been in space, as if to test how his body would function. It was a pretty successful publicity stunt for NASA.
It is important to develop technologies for uses in space, most of this research and development does not need people in space.
Space science, telescopes, etc. are important. But people on a space telescope will not allow it to operate.
There is importance in people's journeys into space for the needs of promoting awareness of engineering and science and education.
But what - they already established the space station, the amount of research that was done was of negligible significance. Only the astronauts in space have to be employed. So please send suggestions…