BALTICS IN SPACE
Is Baltics in Space in You?
BALTIC SPACE FACILITIES: COMPETENCIES
In our first successfully funded (two grants) integrative project, a deep collaboration between Baltics in Space, eight Baltic space facilities, the Latvian Investment Agency, the European Commission Latvia Representation office, two editors and a graphics designer created this beautiful booklet in 2017.
Each institute has its chapter with future versions of each chapter up to the responsibility of each institute. We are expecting to include more departments of Baltic space workers in this booklet too.
Baltics in Space will edit and integrate the individual chapters and carry the latest versions here.
This booklet is a product of Baltics in Space in the spirit of open collaboration and open support. To help each other, not compete with each other. If external entities wish to use the information in the booklet in whole in a project, you are violating the mandate of Baltics in Space. Please contact us to discuss how to include Baltics in Space in your project.
Introduction to our Competencies
BOOKLET: BALTIC SPACE FACILITIES
From the Introduction. Welcome to the Baltic Region's Space Facilities!
From the propulsion of the E-Sail to a unique model of collaboration between government, businesses and non-profits, the Baltic space workers show an agility, fortitude, and passion for space work that deserves a wider audience.
The eight Baltic space facilities from southern Finland (FI), Estonia (EE), Latvia (LV) and Lithuania (LT), have a long history in space work to study geomagnetic variations, develop rocketry, track satellites, study the terrestrial and interplanetary climates, perform radio communications, measure stellar asteroseismic activity and late-evolution stars, and perform small planetary body observations.
In the last few decades, the Baltic Space Facilities have further developed their historical skillsets in parallel with the miniaturization of the electronics and instrumentation of the space industry.
In the realm of successful observations, we have powerful high-resolution (LT) and multi-wavelength (LV) spectroscopy of stellar objects (LT) and of terrestrial terrains (LV, EE), we have years of asteroid discoveries in real-time (LT) and in pre-coveries (LV), plus state-of-the-art asteroid orbit determinations (FI).
In the realm of successful mathematical applications, we have world-class theoretical, experimental, and numerical understanding of light-scattering off of airless planetary surfaces (FI) plus climate modeling and interplanetary space weather (FI).
In the realm of successful public engagement, we have the strong political support to be a full member of the European Space Agency (ESA) --EE, the widespread public support for the line of nanosatellite development (EE), the restoration of major Soviet era space equipment (LV), the attraction of large numbers of youth (EE, LV, LT), and a citizen-science and citizen-business rocketry effort (LV).
Each of our Facilities shows unique and strong individual competencies. At a national level, the proofs of Baltic regional space competency is visible in European Commission (EC) FP7 success rates in Space Themes: EE: 34.4%[1], LV: 35.0%[2], and LT: 37.5%[3], when the EU average success rate was 29%.
Together, our individual and national strengths represent a Baltic regional space competency that rivals other European regions.
Moreover, our Baltic Space Facilities competencies are well-positioned for 'New Space', i.e. entrepreneurial space, astropreneurship, and commercial space[4].
We hope that, as you browse through our chapters, you will find skillsets that your team is seeking. Please don't hesitate to contact staff at the addresses within with your questions and for your potential collaborations.
Welcome to this first edition, September 2017, of the Baltic Space Facilities booklet.
Amara L. Grapa, Baltics in Space
Juris Žagars, Ventspils International Radio Astronomical Center and the Latvian Academy of Sciences
September 2017
[1] Estonia (see Table 14)
http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/20182/117536/S2E_EE_national_profile.pdf
[2] Latvia (see Table 12)
http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/20182/117536/S2E_LV_national_profile.pdf
[3] Lithuania (see Table 12)
http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/20182/117536/S2E_LT_national_profile.pdf
The Annexes describe further how the regional space competency is delineated.
[4] -- Finland with E-sail propulsion, asteroid polarimetry, space weather numerical modeling, and long years of ESA full membership.
-- Estonia with entrepreneurial cubesats, strong eco-system (*) of industry to support space, long working cooperation with Finland, new ESA member; can teach ESA space competencies to LV, LT.
(*) http://www.eas.ee/kosmos/en/companies-and-research-groups/companies
-- Latvia with large renovated space equipment, decades of satellite tracking and radio communication, and a private, successfully-funded environmental institute (IES) from which other Baltic countries can learn.
-- Lithuania is best positioned for research on 'in-space resources': asteroids, many hundreds discovered, it has the largest public astronomical observatory in Europe.