Israel, UAE Issue Joint Call For Space Research Proposals

The Israel Space Agency issued a joint call with the UAE Space Agency on Thursday, inviting scientists from universities and research institutions to submit research proposals based on data collected by VENµS, a satellite operated by Israeli and French space agencies, that monitors vegetation and environment on earth.

A joint UAE-Israel committee will choose one proposal to receive $200,000 in funding from the UAE and Israel Space Agencies. Recipients of the grant will be expected to identify practical ways to integrate greater levels of sustainability into water and agricultural resources, specifically, using information derived from data analytics, machine learning, and informatics as well as other related techniques.  

Research proposals will form the basis for the Environment Monitoring Joint Research Project, an Earth observation program facilitated between the Israel Space Agency and CNES, France’s Space Agency. 

The VENµS satellite’s name is an acronym for Vegetation and Environment Monitoring on a New Micro-Satellite, and its scientific goal is to acquire data in certain terrestrial areas of interest that can help scientists better understand environmental and vegetation processes. Doing so fosters improved strategies for tending to water resources, implementing precision agriculture, mapping terrestrial features, and more.

“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,” Orit Farkash-Hacohen, Israel’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology said, according to Emirates News Agency (WAM.) “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.”