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The GIOVE-A satellite, built by Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) based upon the University of Surrey's Space Centre research, was the first satellite launched to provide navigation and timing signals for Europe's Galileo constellation (a `European GPS').
Built in just 30 months against a hard deadline and at a fraction of the competing industry cost, GIOVE-A enabled Europe in 2008 to secure the rights to the key frequency bands critical to the operation of Galileo over the coming decades. GIOVE-A also provided the first precise timing transmissions from its 22,000 km Earth orbit with widespread impact through enabling European industry to build and test commercial consumer products for this market estimated at £90B from 2008 onwards.
Albedo and fire impacts have been identified as Essential Climate Variables, i.e. key to climate monitoring systems and for informing land-use management. UCL research underpinned development of global, long-term satellite albedo and burned area products, which have become de facto standards distributed freely by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The albedo data are used by meteorological agencies such as the UK Met Office, and for climate monitoring by organisations such as the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The burned area data are used for fire management by government agencies including the US Department of Agriculture and South African National Parks Agency.
The University of Surrey created the first international satellite constellation dedicated to monitoring natural and man-made disasters worldwide. The Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) comprises 6 advanced small Earth Observation satellites built at Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) for China, Algeria, Nigeria, Turkey, Spain and the UK that can image worldwide within 24 hours to provide critical and timely information to international disaster assessment and relief agencies. The DMC has responded to over 200 major disasters and, the UN estimates, aided over 250,000 disaster victims. SSTL's subsidiary company, DMCii, has created commercial applications and services generating sales of over £130M and ~100 high-technology jobs.
The University of Southampton's research into space debris has made a vital contribution to space policy by addressing an issue identified by the United Nations (UN) as having important implications for all humanity. This research has played a key role in advising policymakers "on how best to manage the orbital environment in a sustainable manner for generations to come" (page 52, UK in Space, British National Space Centre, 2009). Challenging prevailing theories, researchers influenced Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) Space Debris Mitigation (SDM) guidelines, resulting in the implementation of sustainable practices by satellite operators in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) requiring an investment by them of an estimated £1 billion since 2008.
Researchers in the Global Environmental Modelling and Earth Observation (GEMEO) group at Swansea University have used satellite data to improve weather forecasts and climate predictions. Using observations of the Earth's land surface from NASA's orbiting Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) flying on board the Terra and Aqua satellites, Swansea University has worked directly with two leading meteorological agencies — the UK Met Office and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) — to refine the way in which land is represented in their numerical weather prediction models. Improved weather forecasting is of clear benefit to society, facilitating day-to-day planning by the public, agriculture, commerce, utility suppliers and transport sectors, as well as preparation for extreme weather events such as floods, heat waves and droughts. The Met Office provides daily weather forecasts for the UK, while the ECMWF model is routinely used by over 30 countries for weather, aviation planning and extreme event warning. The Met Office states that the research presented here has resulted in significantly improved weather forecasts, in particular of rainfall and temperature, and more realistic climate simulations to inform the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The ECMWF reports improvement of precipitation forecast, increasing predicted summer rainfall by 7%, and its variability, which is relevant to flood and drought forecast, increased by 30%.
Research conducted within the Department of Space and Climate Physics at UCL has had a significant impact upon e2v Ltd., a manufacturer of charge-coupled devices (CCDs). Through working collaboratively with e2v, UCL has helped the company to secure major contracts and business [text removed for publication]. This includes two contracts for the supply of CCDs for the European Space Agency (ESA) missions Gaia (€20 million) and Euclid (€10 million). Furthermore, the symbiotic relationship has contributed to the establishment of e2v as Europe's leading supplier of high-quality CCDs for space science applications and has underpinned an improved understanding of device design and optimisation within the company.
UCL's research and development programme in space science and engineering enabled it to complete four major contracts with European and Canadian space companies between 2009 and 2011. These contracts were for the supply of equipment that will fly on European and Indian space missions, and for support of the ground testing of those space missions. The fact that these contracts were won by UCL in a competitive environment against low-cost industrial providers demonstrates that customers value the capability that UCL possesses. By acting as a specialist provider within the UK space sector supply chain, UCL enabled the prime contractors European Astrium Aerospace and Canadian Routes AstroEngineering Ltd. to deliver substantial commercial contracts with space agencies. Its provision of specialist input into these major contracts enabled UCL to also directly support the growth of the commercial space sector.
Space weather can adversely affect the performance of many communication and navigation systems. Research into space weather events and their mapping through our Multi-Instrument Data Analysis System (MIDAS) algorithms have highlighted the vulnerability of Global Satellite Navigation Systems (including GPS). The impact of our research has occurred in three main ways. Firstly, it has impacted on the global satellite and communications industry by enabling space-weather effects to be included in a sophisticated commercial GPS simulator. Secondly, it has impacted on UK government [text removed for publication]. Thirdly, it has engaged and informed the public about GPS and space weather.
The development and application, by a UCL and Royal Institution (UCL/RI) team, of a powerful range of computational and experimental techniques has had a major impact on understanding of catalysis at the molecular level. The translation of these approaches to industry — achieved through fellowships, collaborations and employment of trained UCL/RI scientists — has had substantial impact on the development and optimisation of key catalytic systems used in energy, environmental, bulk and fine chemicals production. Computational modelling software has been commercialised by Accelrys following interaction with the UCL/RI team. Products and processes at Johnson Matthey have been developed and enhanced over a shorter timescale, ultimately leading to good returns and a sustained market position. The approaches also provided evidence that platinum-containing vehicle emission catalysts are not a source of chloroplatinates in the environment and can therefore continue to be used.
Research on Frequency Selective Surface (FSS) structures has led to major advances in the design and manufacture of the world's most advanced payload instrumentation for use in Earth observation satellites. This technology has provided the core element of the radiometer instrumentation needed for more accurate global weather forecasts and better understanding of climate change. The advances described have made it possible to combine all of the different functions of the MetOP-SG radiometer into one instrument, thereby halving the footprint of the satellite payload resulting in a [text removed for publication] cost saving.