HUN-REN space experiments proved to be ‘spectacularly successful'
Among the experiments, Kapu recorded videos of lightning activity and related electrical flashes of light, so-called FEF phenomena, that appear above thunderstorm clouds for the HUN-REN Geophysics and Space Research Institute.
The images are expected to be helpful in verifying detection efficiency in ground-based lightning detection networks and applying knowledge of electrical activity of thunderstorms in climate research, the statement noted.
Meanwhile, on behalf of the HUN-REN Alfred Renyi Mathematical Research Institute, Kapu conducted measurements related to a new tracking method which can be used in medicine, robotics, and even video games, and the mission provided an opportunity for longer measurements of calibration data from two complete orbits. Preliminary results can be expected in a few weeks once NASA has released the data. The algorithms derived from the experiment may, in addition, aid space navigation and the joint coordination of spacecraft during docking, the statement added.
Kapu also furthered a discovery in 2024 by HUN-REN-BME Morphodynamics Research Group applied mathematicians regarding spatial structures called soft cells which could only be performed in a weightless environment. He created bodies of water to create soft cells, forming a connected structure from several soft cells and thereby showing that spatial structures cling to each other in an unusual and highly stable way, according to the statement.
Meanwhile, crystal chemists from the HUN-REN Natural Science Research Centre, in cooperation with the HUNOR Program and the Japanese space industry company JAMSS, spent a month growing single crystals from a new organic compound. Under weightless conditions, more crystal structures can be grown than in any laboratory on Earth. This may open new avenues in chemical research and industrial applications, being the first hydrogen-bonded framework structure ever to be crystallised in a weightless environment.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Budapest Times
9 hours ago
- Budapest Times
Researchers join international project for greener, more sustainable Danube region
The HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research said on Tuesday that researchers from six central and eastern European countries have joined an international project aimed at making the Danube region greener and more sustainable. Project CLIMANATRES is aimed at aiding the coordination of cross-border habitat restoration along the Sava and Danube rivers, the statement said, adding that the Centre for Ecological Research is one of the leading partners on the initiative. The HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research is partnering on the project with institutions in Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Serbia, they said, noting that the initiative's plans are taking into consideration the European Union's nature restoration goals and the expected impacts of climate change. As part of the project, research centres, local, regional and national nature protection institutions, as well as forestry planning institutions, will prepare maps and databases aimed at supporting ecological restoration plans. The researchers will also prepare five action plans, which will contribute to improving the interconnectedness and natural condition of the Sava and the Danube's ecological corridors.
Budapest Times
17-07-2025
- Budapest Times
HUN-REN space experiments proved to be ‘spectacularly successful'
HUN-REN has confirmed that space experiments, such as the observation of the upper atmosphere electrical activities taking place in the Earth's night hemisphere, carried out on the International Space Station by Hungarian research astronaut Tibor Kapu, who returned to Earth on Tuesday, have proved to be spectacularly successful. Among the experiments, Kapu recorded videos of lightning activity and related electrical flashes of light, so-called FEF phenomena, that appear above thunderstorm clouds for the HUN-REN Geophysics and Space Research Institute. The images are expected to be helpful in verifying detection efficiency in ground-based lightning detection networks and applying knowledge of electrical activity of thunderstorms in climate research, the statement noted. Meanwhile, on behalf of the HUN-REN Alfred Renyi Mathematical Research Institute, Kapu conducted measurements related to a new tracking method which can be used in medicine, robotics, and even video games, and the mission provided an opportunity for longer measurements of calibration data from two complete orbits. Preliminary results can be expected in a few weeks once NASA has released the data. The algorithms derived from the experiment may, in addition, aid space navigation and the joint coordination of spacecraft during docking, the statement added. Kapu also furthered a discovery in 2024 by HUN-REN-BME Morphodynamics Research Group applied mathematicians regarding spatial structures called soft cells which could only be performed in a weightless environment. He created bodies of water to create soft cells, forming a connected structure from several soft cells and thereby showing that spatial structures cling to each other in an unusual and highly stable way, according to the statement. Meanwhile, crystal chemists from the HUN-REN Natural Science Research Centre, in cooperation with the HUNOR Program and the Japanese space industry company JAMSS, spent a month growing single crystals from a new organic compound. Under weightless conditions, more crystal structures can be grown than in any laboratory on Earth. This may open new avenues in chemical research and industrial applications, being the first hydrogen-bonded framework structure ever to be crystallised in a weightless environment.
Budapest Times
17-07-2025
- Budapest Times
FM: It was ‘an honor' for foreign ministry to coordinate second Hungarian research space mission
Tibor Kapu's return to Earth on Tuesday marked the end of the stage of the mission that the Hungarian research astronaut spent on the International Space Station. Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said on Tuesday that it was 'an honor' for the foreign ministry to coordinate the completion of the second Hungarian research space mission after 45 years. Tibor Kapu's return to Earth on Tuesday marked the end of the stage of the mission that the Hungarian research astronaut spent on the International Space Station, Minister Szijjártó said during a break in a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, according to a ministry statement. 'We are proud that Hungary is among the countries that have been able to become a frontrunner in global technology, space exploration and the space industry by placing a research astronaut mission at the top of their space exploration and space industry programme,' Minister Szijjártó said. 'This Hungarian research astronaut mission gave us the opportunity to carry out several scientific experiments that could only be conducted on the ISS, and which will ensure more serious growth and breakthrough opportunities for the Hungarian economy,' the minister said. Minister Szijjártó said it was 'an honour' for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to be chosen by the government seven years ago to carry out the space mission. 'It was an honour for us to be able to successfully complete this complex, often doubtful task,' Minister Szijjártó said. 'It was an honour to work with all the candidates who felt the courage and willingness to carry out this important mission as the second Hungarian research astronaut.' 'We thank Tibor Kapu for completing the preparation and taking on this mission, representing 15 million Hungarians,' the minister said. 'It was an honour for all of us at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to coordinate the second Hungarian space mission.' 'I hope the entire Hungarian nation is proud that from this day, Hungary can say that it has completed two successful space missions within half a century,' he added.
