The pioneer nano-satellite from Finland has reached space, homing the worlds first infrared hyperspectral camera. The images being provided could give an amazing insight into how we can monitor and manage the effects of climate change.
The Reaktor Hello World nanosatellite was launched into space on 29 November by the Finnish space technology startup Reaktor Space Lab.
New tiny nanosatellites, such as the Reaktor Hello World satellite, weighing only a couple of kilograms are relatively cheap and fast to build. In groups, nanosatellites can form cost-efficient constellations. With the help of the new Finnish imaging technology, nanosatellites are now able to collect critical, nearly real-time data on the state of our planet. That development has far-reaching benefits for monitoring climate change.
This imaging data allows us to monitor the state of carbon sink resources, whilst enabling optimization of food production and reducing agricultural induced environmental load, thus providing a way to sense water irrigation needs and optimise the usage of fertilizers in fields.
Data can also be used to predict environmental disasters such as forest fires!
"This new technology will allow us to react to global environmental changes in near real time. That opens up many new business opportunities as well as ways to combat climate change," says Tuomas Tikka, CEO of Reaktor Space Lab, Reaktor's portfolio company that specializes in building advanced nanosatellites for space-based services.
As an example, the first images were taken on 2nd of December over the Sahara desert and they were downloaded from the Reaktor Hello World during the first weeks of December.
"The image above Sahara (Figure 1) shows how the water content of an area can be determined and mapped based on infrared spectral image data," explains Antti Näsilä, Senior Scientist at VTT and the leading technical expert for the camera development of the Reaktor Hello World nanosatellite mission.
"This type of information could prove crucial for areas fighting drought or forest fires, both of which are becoming more common with the changing climate. In the future, nanosatellite constellations could provide, for instance, concurring updates about the severity of the droughts in each neighbourhood in California," says Näsilä.
