Latest news with #satelliteTechnology
National Post
24-06-2025
- Science
- National Post
SFL Missions Inc. Announces Launch and Successful Deployment of Two GHGSat Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Microsatellites
Article content TORONTO — SFL Missions Inc. today announced the successful launch and deployment of the GHGSat-C12 and GHGSat-C13 (also known as Pierre and Valmay, respectively) greenhouse gas monitoring microsatellites developed for GHGSat of Montreal. SFL Missions Inc. developed the satellites on a low-cost, high-performance 15-kg NEMO bus, the same used to build the first nine GHGSat spacecraft. Article content GHGSat-C12 and -C13 launched on June 23 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, aboard the SpaceX Transporter 14 ride-share mission. Ground control has established communications with both spacecraft. Article content 'SFL Missions is pleased that GHGSat has once again placed trust in us to support development of its industry-leading commercial greenhouse gas monitoring constellation,' said SFL Missions Director Dr. Robert E. Zee. 'We take pride in developing barrier-breaking, budget-aggressive small satellite missions for commercial, government, and academic customers worldwide.' Article content GHGSat is the world leader in emissions monitoring technologies and pioneered the first satellite capable of detecting and measuring facility-level greenhouse gas emissions from space. Decision-makers across governments and industries including oil and gas, power generation, mining, waste management, and agriculture rely on GHGSat emissions data to drive emissions reduction and accelerate the decarbonization of the planet. Article content SFL Missions was selected to develop the two latest satellites due in part to the precise attitude control and target tracking capabilities of its satellite platforms – rare among spacecraft of their size and price points. This enables exact pointing of the onboard sensors, which is vital to the accurate detection and measurement of greenhouse gas emissions from sources on the ground. SFL Missions' platforms have earned a well-deserved reputation for quality, performance and reliability. Article content In addition, SFL Missions incorporates robust design margins into every satellite, and these include the onboard power systems, data storage, and downlink capacities. These margins in orbit translate into better operations and longer missions, contributing to the better-than-anticipated collection capacity that GHGSat has achieved with its earlier NEMO-based spacecraft. Article content SFL Missions is building on a heritage that has produced 88 operationally successful missions and 380+ cumulative years in orbit. The firm is developing nano-, micro-, and small satellites and constellations using space-proven bus designs from 3 to 500 kilograms for Earth observation, communications, environmental monitoring, maritime situational awareness, space astronomy, scientific research and more. Article content Currently expanding its Toronto satellite manufacturing facilities, SFL Missions has 20 satellites under development or awaiting launch. In addition, SFL Missions offers a Flex Production program that will give customers the option of having satellites developed in their own location, at a third-party site, or at the SFL Missions facility. Article content SFL Missions Inc. generates bigger returns from smaller, lower cost satellites. Small satellites built by SFL Missions consistently push the performance envelope and disrupt the traditional cost paradigm. We build quality small satellites at low cost that work the first time and enable NewSpace companies to mass produce through our Flex Production program. Satellites are built with advanced power systems, stringent attitude control and high-volume data capacity that are striking relative to the budget. We arrange launches globally and maintain a mission control center accessing ground stations worldwide. The pioneering and barrier-breaking work of SFL Missions is a key enabler to tomorrow's cost-aggressive satellites and constellations. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Article content Article content
Japan Times
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Agriculture ministry aims to stop publishing rice index amid accuracy concerns
The agriculture ministry plans to cease publishing its rice crop situation index, which has been used for almost seven decades, after farmers and retailers voiced concerns that government data is overstated, the farm ministry said Monday. The rice crop situation index –– or the ratio of rice yield per 10 ares (1,000 sq. meters) to the average yield per 10 ares –– shows the condition of the crop. For rice produced in 2024, the crop situation index was in the same range as previous years at 101, or 1% more rice crops than the average year, according to the agriculture ministry. 'Amid speculation from the public and farmers about the various data and statistics on rice, our ministry debated over what is really the best way to make revisions,' farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters, adding, 'We've decided that to release the index will mean doing nothing about this inaccuracy.' The gap between the crop situation index and farmers' testimonies occurred because the ministry was using outdated sampling numbers –– trends from the past three decades, during which cold weather resulted in smaller yields, making it inappropriate to compare with current crops. 'From now on, we want to use satellites, artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technology to improve our accuracy, establishing a new foundation for agriculture policies,' Koizumi said. The Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications will make the final decision regarding whether to stop publishing the crop situation index. Koizumi's remarks came after he visited Fukushima Prefecture on Sunday to meet with officials from the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives (JA) and rice farmers, who said that the agriculture ministry's rice crop situation index does not reflect reality. 'So you're saying that you're not producing, not harvesting as much as the agriculture ministry is saying? Well, we've been hearing the same thing in other regions,' Koizumi told the farmers, adding, 'I will make sure that you feel like (the ministry's data) is getting closer to what you're sensing on-site.' Since replacing his predecessor, who stepped down over a gaffe about rice four weeks ago, Koizumi has repeatedly said rice prices had surged since last summer due to a sharp drop in shipments made to JA and other distributors despite higher production. Farmers produced 6.79 million tons of rice last year, up 180,000 tons from the previous year, according to the farm ministry. In 2025, they are projected to yield 7.19 million tons of rice, which would take the harvest 400,000 tons higher compared with last year's and make it the largest in five years, the ministry said –– data which is now being refuted by farmers, themselves. 'I really want you to figure out the root cause of this rice shortage,' JA Fukushima Chuou-kai president Keiji Kano told Koizumi on Sunday. Other factors, including a rising number of foreign visitors consuming more of the staple grain and speculative buyers entering the market, are also said to have contributed to price hikes. Some critics blamed farmers for not producing enough rice to meet demand. The farm ministry released an additional 200,000 metric tons of stockpiled rice harvested in 2021 and 2020 through no-bid contracts last Wednesday. The retail price for the 2021 rice is expected to be around ¥1,800 ($12.43) per 5-kilogram bag while the 2020 rice is expected to cost ¥1,700. 'We need to prevent consumers from buying less rice, which we are (preventing) with farmers' interests in mind. I ask for your understanding. I don't think that (rice) will be ¥2,000 forever,' Koizumi said.
