MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said that the Philippines’ satellites have generated thousands of maps, images, and other data for several purposes, during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 22.
“[Satellites] now provide us with vital information that guides our country’s… decision-making in agricultural development, urban planning, and environmental management, including the strengthening of our maritime domain awareness,” the President said.
The Philippines has launched eight satellites – two microsatellites Diwata-1 and Diwata-2, and six cube satellites Maya-1 to -6.
The Diwata satellites focus on Earth observation, capturing images of the Philippines from the atmosphere. Diwata-1, launched in 2016, was decommissioned or had its mission ended in 2020. Meanwhile, the Maya satellites have returned to Earth, but their models are still being studied for future satellite projects. Diwata-2 was launched in 2018 and is the lone satellite from the Philippines currently in orbit.
The President also mentioned the 16 engineers from the Philippine Space Agency who are currently working on the Multi-Spectral Unit for Land Assessment (MULA) satellite in the United Kingdom.
“Once completed, the MULA satellite will be our largest earth observation satellite to be launched into space so far,” the President said.
“May they inspire the next generation of Filipino students to follow in their footsteps and reach for the stars.”
MULA, like Diwata-1 and Diwata-2, will also be an Earth observation satellite but bigger, targeted to be launched in 2026.
The Diwata satellites were a little over 50 kilograms each, while MULA will weigh around 130 kilograms. MULA will also capture more data with just one camera.
To compare, one of the cameras of the Diwata satellites has a swath width of around 4 kilometers. Swath width refers to the horizontal distance that a satellite can capture. MULA’s swath width is around 120 kilometers.
Images captured by Earth observation satellites are used by agencies for disaster assessment and environmental monitoring.
On Facebook, a social media user looks forward to the launch of MULA.
However, science advocates group AGHAM Youth National previously called out the lack of support from the Marcos administration for the country’s science and technology sector.
“Sa nakalipas na taon ay makikitang walang direkta at aktibong suporta mula sa rehimeng Marcos para sa pagpapalaganap ng sektor ng Agham,” AGHAM Youth National said in a social media post on Saturday, July 20.
(In past years, there has been no direct and active support from Marcos’ regime for the advancement of the science sector.)
“Bagkus ay mas pinalaganap ng kanyang rehimen ng anti-mamamayan na mga polisiya. Patuloy pa rin ang pag-usbong ng samu’t saring mga reklamasyon na sumisira sa ating kapaligiran.”
(On the contrary, Marcos’ regime advances anti-people policies. Reclamation projects continue to prosper and destroy the environment.)
In both his 2024 and 2023 SONAs, the President briefly made mention of the relevant scholarships and research and development grants that continue to be available for students, and was mum about the several controversial reclamation projects in the country. – Rappler.com