Space is becoming ‘more accessible’ every day

Mariecar Jara-Puyod, Senior Reporter

A visiting Israeli aerospace veteran believes more discoveries in the great outer space, beneficial to mankind and which would also generate employment, is attainable if governments join forces together.

Email interviewed, ahead of his arrival for the Oct. 25 to 29 “72nd International Astronautical Congress (IAC) 2021” at the Dubai World Trade Centre, was Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI)-Space Division vice president/general manager Col. Shlomi Sudri. Colonel Shlomi Sudri has over 25 years of experience in the air and missile defence programmes through his involvement at the Israeli Air Force and Israeli Ministry of Defence.He is among the people behind the Beresheet 1, the private sector-inspired smallest spacecraft and lunar lander that reached the moon on April 22, 2019 as well as the Vegetation and Environment Monitoring on a New Micro-Satellite (VENUS) of the Israel Space Agency and the French National Centre of Space Research.

On Oct.20 (Wednesday) and from the Leadership Pavilion of the Expo2020 Dubai, UAE Minister of State for Advanced Technology Sarah Bint Yousef Al Amiri and Israeli Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology Orit Farkash-Hachoen signed the historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the collaborations for the Beresheet 2 and VENUS that will also enhance, through educational exchange programmes, the astuteness and interest of Emirati and Israeli youth on aerospace, science, technology, engineering and arithmetic.

IAI, also known as “Israel’s Space House” is a globally-recognised aerospace and defence company into the innovation and delivery of state-of-the-art technology in space, air, land, naval, cyber and homeland security for defence and commercial markets.

Sudri would be announcing at the IAC the new IAI small and lightweight satellite concept called Mini Communication Satellite (MCS).

The MCS is equipped with space smartphone and digital communication abilities for constant communications and updates with the ground station.

The annual international summit is where approximately 6,000 players in the global space sector meet to discuss “the latest space information and developments in academia and industry, networking opportunities, contacts and potential partnerships.” Sudri is seeing “more international cooperation in the next few years as in recent months we have seen commercial space travel (gaining excitement across the globe); space is becoming more accessible every day, and through collaboration, we can bring it even closer.” Gulf Today asked Sudri if it were worth for man to go beyond Earth and investigate the universe.

Almost a fortnight back, Prince William, the future king of the UK, openly expressed his opinion that more investments must be concentrated on the re-shaping of planet Earth.

Sudri said: “The space industry provides an opportunity to bring people together. There are no boundaries in research and space exploration. For centuries, people from around the world have looked up at the sky and wondered what lies beyond. We have dreamt of reaching space, and now that we have the capability to do so, we dream of exploring it farther and learning how we can use space to enhance the human experience. By innovating and creating end-to-end solutions, we can come together and discover how we can utilise space and develop innovative solutions.” Sudri expounded more the value of surveying the space, when asked of the numbers of Israelis into the field of aeronautics, what comprises the space industry, how has it grown at least in the last five years, and if it were sorely affected by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In so doing, he pointed out the high probability of job creation especially so when the space industry is tied to a national space programme wherein everyone, particularly the future generations, are encouraged to take part of.

Sudri said: “National space programmes contribute to academic research, mostly breakthroughs in nature, which later returns to the industry for implementation. Where there is industry, there is employment. The appeal that space has for the youth and the motivation it creates for high engineering studies, a national programme becomes a technological engine of the local high-tech industry and a growth engine for the country that chooses to invest in it.” Sudri wrote: “The pandemic actually showed the world that space goes beyond conventional boundaries.”