Space: Department of Science and Technology briefing

Meeting report

Mr Mmboneni Muofhe, DDG: Technology Innovation, Department of Science and Technology (DST), presented on Space Issues, attempts to focus on every aspect that DST was involved with and this entailed the historical context to substantiate the value proposition of space science and technology that the Department was advocating, as well as highlighting progress made since launching the Grand Science Space Challenge. Firstly, South Africa has a long and rich history in Space Science, but at some point the particular capabilities were lost, and since the revitalisation of the sector was embarked on. This process was initially highlighted in the National Research and Development Strategy (NRDS). The ten- year innovation plan (TYIP) had a specific focus that produced the Space Science and Technology Grand Challenge, which had targets to achieve from its onset in 2008. The pillars that the Department had wanted to build on was that of Innovation (new technology platforms & missions; advanced manufacturing; knowledge generation); Science, engineering and technology (SET) human resources and transformation, and creating an effective government Science and Technology (S&T) system. The Space Grand Challenge TYIP had key outcomes, viz:

• Establish a National Space agency
• Ensure independent Earth observation high-resolution data from a constellation of satellites designed and manufactured in Africa;
• Have in place a 20-year launch capability plan;
• Specify and co-built a domestic/ regional communications satellite and secure a launch slot and ITU slot for its operations;
• Ultimately, DST aimed to become the preferred destination for major astronomy projects; and
• Construct a powerful radio-astronomy telescope.

At the time, the key outcomes were worked out, the space size activities were put together inclusive of part of the space science that looks down from above, i.e. astronomy, and part of space science that looks up. It was important for the Department to figure out exactly where South Africa was globally, which was how does the country compare with its competitors internally and who exactly was it competitors? South Africa was at the basement of three groupings, viz. the first grouping was ‘emerging space nations’, secondly were the ‘intermediate space nations’, followed by the ‘established space nations’ as the third and final group. Undoubtedly, the Americans and Russians were leading the pack. The Space Capability Audit was done to compare South Africa’s starting point and its account for its global progress. Moreover, DST also reviewed the country’s position in the context of Africa, as it had become one of the growing consumers of space science for various reasons. However, the challenge in terms of utilisation of space product was it basically adds to the bill of technological imports, because Africa was not generating it, also there was no capability in some instances to even interpret the data derived from the satellites. Regarding the BRICS stance, DST looked at the expenditure on Earth Observation, of which China was the lead spender with US$10.7billion. South Africa was not yet of the means to spend and invest as much as the other BRICS countries. The growing rate of space consumption on the continent indicates that there were many opportunities for growth of space science in Africa.

If certain aspirations were to be achieved, a certain level of maturity needs to be attained, thus the ‘normal standard’ existed that included some part of space activity. Next, was the ‘aeronautic standard’ that encompassed so many more space related engagements, for instance manufacturing. The ‘high level standard’ at level 5 was the domain of the big players and it was also the ambition of DST. Currently, DST had moved from the days in which revitalisation was sought after, which was from the normal standard to aeronautic standard. However, there was much that could be done in addition to the accomplishments that had transpired. There was also the issue of various capabilities that would need to be substantiated called Technological Capacity, viz: 1) the ground fixed application was the starting point and the highest level was 5) space application that was manufacturing and operating large satellites. The Technological Capacity also entailed the capability of launching as well as the feasibility and viability of South Africa having its own launching capabilities/pads. It was a couple of years since the Strategy was first launched, subsequently, DST had revised what it was enabled to achieve and where that had advanced the country. South Africa’s global position had improved from the basement, due to the launch of SumbandilaSat, Tshepiso and recently 2 Cube Satellites built by University of Stellenbosch and SCS Aerospace Group (private company) as contributions to the EU Project called QB50. It should be empathised that whilst other countries that SA was compared to might have larger satellites in space and space related activities, they were actually not doing the extensive work of space science that SA was achieving, even regarding manufacturing, because they had the tendency to buy satellites and then launch the purchased satellites into space, as opposed to creating it. A typical example was Nigeria, as she would buy satellites and then launch it. South Africa’s Strategy was that manufacturing of satellites should be self- derived, because such would be highly advantageous.

Mr Muofhe reflected on the relevance of space science and technology on various Government priorities. Firstly, in terms of economic growth, space science had been a contributor to national economic turnover and had created a lot of employment, this was because there was so much more involved in the sector than the manufacturing of the toys and launching it into space. There was much capability built around engineering and electronics; and its skill set had other related impacts on the economy, as it could be deployed elsewhere. Upon the onset of the initiative, increasing the human resource capacity was paramount. The initiatives also sought to address national inequality, poverty and unemployment. For instance, regarding inequality it sought to strengthen the transformation agenda in the space domain by including more Black individuals, i.e. approximately 80%, and female citizens in SMS level positions, i.e. 50% respectively. Space Science Technology also contributed to the 9- Point Plan, viz.:

1. Resolving the energy challenge
2. Revitalising agriculture and the agro-processing value chain
3. Advancing beneficiation or adding value to the mineral wealth
4. More effective implementation of higher impact industrial policy action plan
5. Unlocking the potential of SMMEs, cooperatives, townships and rural enterprises
6. Operations Phakisa (Oceans Economy)
7. State reform and boosting the role of state-owned companies, information and communications technology infrastructure or broadband roll-out, water, sanitation and transport infrastructure

Resolving the energy challenge would entail that Space applications will contribute to the energy security by providing information on the renewable energy resources, such as solar irradiance map or atlas; space weather; AFIS; electrification. AFIS, which was the Advance Fire Information Management System, could forewarn possible fires breaking out across the country, which could be helpful regarding the preservation of forestry and wildlife. The solar irradiance map already indicated that the worst area in the country regarding solar was actually 50% better than the best points of solar in Germany.

Current space programmes included the Satellite Build Programme; SPOT 5 that was a commercial high-res optical imaging satellite system; Operation Phakisa: oceans economy and marine protection that would enable the ability to notice poachers immediately upon their entry into South African coastal waters; National Oceans and Coasts Information Management System that would see beyond the surface into the quality of seawater, such as detecting harmful algae bloom that may affect human health, and the CubeSats Development Programme that includes both the Nano- satellite constellation monitoring platform that enables fresh data on a global scale and the maritime domain awareness.

However, pragmatism was somewhat prohibited by current legislation, thus the Space Affairs Act of No. 84 of 1993, as amended needs to be repealed. The New Space Affairs Bill would create a supportive regulatory framework for the industry. It would also provide for the establishment of the South African Space Regulatory Council (SASREC) - the Space Council, and the Space Affairs Chief Directorate.

Within the Space Strategy the identified thematic areas such as navigation, communications and dual-use technology, i.e. defence technology, necessitates that government departments work closely in a coordinated manner to ensure that those thematic areas are addressed, and that programmes are jointly funded. He concluded that this was merely a reflection, because if every programme was outlined it would require a day of presentation per programme.

Mr Humbulani Mudau, Chief Director: Space Science and Technology, DST, elaborated that repealing the current Space Bill was informed by the current political climate of South Africa that evoked new bills that came into play, as well as international treaties and developments that had occurred. Additionally, upon review of the changes that were occurring, it was evident that in South Africa there were emerging space developments. Therefore, the current legislation, i.e. Space Affairs Act, does not have sufficient provisions to ensure that space affairs could be adequately regulated in the country. Hence, the Department wants to use the new Space Bill to ensure that it promotes and supports growth of domestic space science industry. The new proposed Bill empathises more on how South Africa as a country adheres to international guidelines and treaties, yet ensures that it builds a viable and sustainable domestic space industry? For its pragmatism, work with the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) and other key stakeholders, such as CSIR and South African National Space Agency. The draft of the new proposed bill was planned in accordance with the date of the Economic Cluster, which would also give the permission to proceed with public consultations. Regarding the Houwteq military facility was critical for the Satellite Build Programme in South Africa. Discussions with the Department of Public Enterprise (DPE) and the Department of Public Works (DPW) reviewed where the best location for that facility should be hosted was. Space technology had a dual-use of which international standards was looked at. The current facility was not used for its explicit purpose, but was hired by film companies. Therefore, there was discussion to migrate the facility to DST or CSIR in order to fully utilise it for the Satellite Build Programme. Lastly, the 2 CubeSatellites might be redeployed from the international space station, which puts South Africa in a position whereby it had launched five satellites from 1999. Therefore, there was return on investment made, due to national progress. However, to ensure a long-term viable space science programme it was imperative that South Africa launches every second year. Other African countries such as Algeria and Nigeria were investing in space programmes extensively. Thus, a coordinated funding mechanism, which was a ring-fenced budget from the DST, DoD, the dti, DTPS, DoT, SSA and key end-user departments, was crucial.

Discussion

Ms J Terblanche (DA) noted that with reference to the citation of defence, viz. “Houwteq facility is of a dual-use nature, which means it can be used for both peaceful and military purposes”, could the satellites be used for border management? Particularly since marine management could be done so well, could the crisis of border management be addressed too? It would be nonsensical if the crisis of border management would persist given the technology of the satellites. Secondly, how else could it be used for military purposes?

Dr A Lotriet (DA) appreciated the presentation, and the interest in Houwteq, because it was initially a military missile launching facility. However, the financial implications of launching the satellites might serve as a concern. Would it be financially feasible to develop launching facilities at Houwteq for other countries to launch from? Secondly, how would the extensive uptake of data and analogies be accurately monitored and accounted for? Does the Department foresee a central place that it would be received and analysed or would receipt of the data be decentralised?

Mr N Koornhof (ANC) appreciated the presentation, and noted that Houwteq was a huge military investment prior to 1994, asked if DST would utilise the facility or was it solely for defence purposes by the South African military? Could further specifications be made regarding the communication satellite, for instance was it restricted to communication of mobile phones or the Internet? Since the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) was a key stakeholder, deliberation with it was done regarding legislation and its proposed amendments, but was it not possible that DST could pursue the new Space Bill on its own? In fact, why was dti involved in space matters? If one department were to deal with the Space Bill it would be effective. It was understood that departments should not operate in silos, but huge delays were inevitably encountered, if dissensions or misunderstandings had occurred during the management of change of legislation. Therefore, why was this not a sole pursuit by DST?

Ms C King (DA) noted that elements of inequality were highlighted with emphasis on transformation. However, many departments were at fault by enforcing transformation at the expense of not employing skilled people and since this Department was of a technical nature the risk thereof should be cautioned even more. Transformation should entail that the appropriate skill set be introduced in Basic Education and then developed at Higher Education level; as opposed to theoretic satisfaction by achieving equity targets for DST, but the pragmatism might entail that appointees lacked the adequate cognitive competence. Also, since performance in Mathematics and Science was dwindling in South Africa had DST considered building Space Science Schools in the country to harness the type of technical ability and the magnitude of accuracy required for occupations relating to space? Regarding the solar radiance map- was this information publicly available? Lastly, would the fire detection capacities be available for usage by municipalities/ Local Government, as recently there were many outbreaks of fires in Cape Town?

The Chairperson appreciated the presentation, and noted that since an indicated challenge was “to have in place a 20-year launch capability plan”, which dynamics would actually prove challenging? Regarding the issue of schools and inequality, could schools within the constituencies be involved or could the regional offices of Basic Education be informed about programmes for scholars that DST has to offer? If schools were to participate, which measures should be undertaken? What does localised climate mean? Regarding the usage of the technology to monitor illegal use of water and remote sense of water pollution, there were occurrences of loss of water due to illegal connections; would DST be able to detect such offences as it happened? Also, to what extent was the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) interacting with DST in terms of the management of water? It was admitted that DST had still used the old names of the other departments- what would the impact be on the work itself if departmental names would be changed accordingly? For instance, the presentation cites the Department of Agriculture, but in reality, the Department was called the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), what would the impact be if corrections were made? He also commented that the questions were appreciated as it highlighted new aspects for learning, yet even so the new aspects were actually old notions that resurfaced. For instance, in the olden days, people looked to the stars for direction, and today there was reliance on technology for interpretation and to garner solutions for everyday experiences. Therefore, the technology may be new, but study of the universe and interpretation thereof was always there, it was merely capacitated differently.

Mr Muohle answered that the use of space science for border control was actually a major reason why South Africa had needed its own satellites, because when purchase of imagery was made from international satellites the agreements were explicitly specific on which usages the data could be used for, as beyond such uses the data was not allowed to be used. There were various ways to enforce that strict adherence to the specifications were done. An example of an inconvenience that this poses was that if data were purchased for the sake of border control, its receipt would be delayed by three days, of which by then it would be of no use. If South Africa were to have its own satellite with good constellation, border control could be effectively done, as the ownership of the data was self- derived and other technologies could be used in conjunction to it, such as radar technology. Since owning a satellite in itself was not free from surrounding challenges; such as the USA that, despite owning its own satellites, it still had the challenge with border control from Mexico when the weather prohibited clear images, because people could sneak through undetected when the weather was bad. Therefore, regarding South Africa, imagery would be of better use if she had her own satellites to do so.

What military uses would the satellites have? South Africa was involved in a lot of peace- keeping missions on the continent, subsequently there was much that could be avoided and dealt with smartly by the usage of satellite technology within those missions. Given the role that South Africa has in the continent, space satellite technology would prove crucial.

Regarding Houwteq its launching capability and military purposes: Orbital Test Bed (OTB), which was the launch site, had a lot of other projects that were considered such as researched based projects in terms of launching. The University of KZN was looking at a project that considered launching capability, which meant that it was a facility that also considered the further developments.

On Elaboration on the 20-year probability plan: DST was considering that if DST were to re-establish the utility of that facility, as there was much in the facility that actually worked. The aim is to upgrade to a level that even if South Africa was not launching a satellite, some other country in the world was using the facility to launch one. The capability report under review was working on the feasibility of it actually happening. Thus, it pertained to the frequency of launches, which encompassed that if South Africa was not launching, country X had booked space and so forth. Later this year the progress of the report shall be presented to the Portfolio Committee after which it could be confirmed if it should continue or not. The groundwork in terms of the infrastructure was there, it just a matter of time for DST to utilise the whole Houwteq facility.

On Analysis of data:  data science was playing a very central part of happenstances country- wide. Now, the whole concept of data science revolution was not mere talk, but was a day-to-day reality. Central to that reality was the issue of data analogy and using the data to deduct useful information. Everything was going to be about generation of data and its usefulness. Thus, the data analogy and quality qualification thereof was quite crucial, which entailed that it needs to be very centralised. The scary thing about science revolution was that institutions would need to be prepared to produce the workers of the future, because the worker of the future shall not be the same calibre as the worker of today. The scary thing was that, in terms of data, in the future one could not be able to get a job as a taxi-driver, because data would be able to determine how to drive a vehicle by itself. It was an important point to raise, because there was a need to upgrade capability accordingly. There was no definitive solution for it yet, but some progress was made, admittedly the activities were not completed at the right intensity, which meant that it should be upgraded. In terms of receiving data and analogy thereof, there was one central point in Pretoria West, but in addition there were a whole a lot of smaller receiving ground stations that would highlight occurrences as it happened, as those that include the localised ones, such as the one at CPUT that was able to download information.

In terms of communication: A communication satellite includes Internet connectivity, mobile connectivity and broadcasting, and the biggest expenditure was on calls. This concern was greatly under discussion with postal communications. DST looked at the possibility of a future build programme that would consider the concept. Vodacom, MTN and other phone networks might make millions in turnover, but they also have to spend such ratios of funds to satellite companies to access their telecommunications networks.

dti as a key stakeholder in the space Bill: the situation was two-fold, viz. the situation posed as is and then the ideal situation. The Department was working with dti and other stakeholders, because that was what the situation was as is. There were better alternatives than to have a pending policy. DST was of the view that the policy was to be situated in one department, because space activity, research funding and other activities related to the growth of the space industry was currently in the scope of the Department of Science and Technology. Therefore, it would have been more useful if the policy- approach would also be the sole responsibility of the Department. This was also part of the discussion that DST was having, and the solutions thereof would be made known accordingly.

Issue of inequality and transformation that should not occur at the expense of technical skills: as a country, it would be collectively assumed that quality should not come at the cost of downgrading standards, because that would not make sense. Sober consideration of where the country was and where the country wants to be is a situation that would ask, how do these programmes become more inclusive. It was therefore a consideration of issues around pipeline, in other words, it was not a matter of how many slices one was going to get out of the cake, but rather growing the cake. The programmes of DST were very targeted, even regarding the recruitment of students, DST would want to create opportunities for students that could add to what was established at DST and build going forward. DST did not want to create a situation in which there was an unnecessary brain drain. In the space science arena DST had by and large managed to maintain and grow, as opposed to deplete whilst the change of mark-up had occurred.

Was the solar radiance map publicly available? Yes, it was freely available and could be accessed by means of a website. It should be emphasised that the worst areas of solar energy in South Africa were 50% better than any area in Germany. That atlas informed many programmes done regarding solar energy.

AFIS: upon review of the weather probable fires could be deciphered and AFIS technology could also be used to do the same. It shall now be used globally. However, Eskom had been using it for years, because there would be major implications of costs should a transmission line be caught on fire. The things that it looked at were the dryness, vegetation, volatility in terms of fire life at the particular point in time and it informs of possible dangers.

Establishment of schools: the CAN satellite initiative by DST could be used even more to excite young people. The satellite technology was basically a can, which could quite useful for the youth to get a sense of space technology. It was imperative that the youth understood that everyday life was linked to satellite technology, whether it was watching television, cell- phone usage or listening to the radio etc, because satellite usage was central to it.

Micro- satellite: in some American cities, micro-satellite was a prevalent concept. For instance, in Parliament it might hypothetically be 20 Degrees, but if one were to travel to V&A Waterfront the atmosphere would change because it was a certain amount of degrees lower or higher. Similarly, if a farmer were to have micro-satellite technology s/he would know which crops to plant at what parts of the farm during certain parts of the year. With growing impact of climate change micro satellite would become pronounced.

Usage of space to monitor water pollution and/or its illegal use: the illegal use of water was mainly around big water consumers, e.g. industrial plants or farmers, as they do not have water licences, but they were drawing much water. By means of the satellite, it could be picked up if a river of certain cubits that was passing a farm that did not have licence to have access to it was being drained out. The major problem of water pollution could also be picked up by means of the satellite. An advantage of remote sensing was that things that were missed by the physical could be sensed with it. Therefore, it could be deciphered if a particular industrial activity was polluting the water.

The impact of the name change: name changes were a matter that sometimes DST does not realise it happening. For instance, during a study it was discovered that the legislation that had existed pertained to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy. However, currently, the departments had separated into two. This triggers a chain, because instead of a position being taken now, it needs to be taken two years later, since there was no legislation that dealt with it in a single regulation. Dealing with issues of space science, some of the policies and regulations were under the Department of Land Affairs, which meant that for the sake of policy reform DST was uncertain of which department to seek after for its change of legislation, as there were now the Department of Agriculture; Department of Rural Development and the Department of Land Reform.

Mr Mudau added that when DST had reviewed the current Space Affairs Act it was discovered that the dual-use technology required address. The dual-use technology entailed putting a nuclear head on it and then sending it off to destroy an enemy or an adversity. The dual –use in this regard does not mean that South African satellites would be sent off to destroy satellites that derived from other countries. DST was of the view that the dual-use technology could be used as defence technology, such as border control management. Border control was both a global phenomenon and a particular concern for South Africa to such an extent that some of the countries were building the live video capability into the satellites, wherein live coverage could be provided for as it occurred. A high temporal resolution was critical to enable the magnitude and frequency of sight. However, South Africa cannot add any video capability to any satellite if it does not own the satellite missions. For instance, if South Africa were to ask of the French for such assistance, they would have to reprogramme their satellites. Upon review of defence for South Africa, DST was of the view that this aspect alone formulated a very strong case.

With regard to the launching capability, DST had conducted a launching capability feasibility study in 2008, in which the feasibility for South Africa was considered against its capital-intensive capacity. That study revealed that it was feasible for South Africa based on the available facilities; however, it was also critical to consider the economic circumstance that the country was in, because it was imperative that economically it would make sense. For sustainability of a facility of that nature it would need to launch two satellites per month, which meant that specifications of the market and its sizes should be considered even though globally most of the other players were not considering it. The New Zealanders have developed a neutron that could be a possible game changer, in terms of launching small satellites. Therefore, due to competition, South Africa might need to consider which niche market existed and subsequently invest in its capability. Therefore, the launching capability was considered for South Africa. The country currently does not have launch pads, although there were some old ones. In KwaZulu-Natal, there were hybrid sounding rockets’ solid and liquid that used for building capacity for research science.

Regarding centralised data, it could be further added that the space agency in space operations does have a data processing centre that needs to be re-engineered. DST was attempting to build the ‘African Research Cloud’, which was linked to the African Research Data Centre that was being built by the SKA. This would be a major opportunity for Africans, as it would ensure that the products and services produced by DST were accessible. Regarding SITCOM, or the satellite communications, if one looks at the services globally 70% of its revenue was used on satellite communications, thus it was a huge spinoff. Therefore, if SA were to build a viable space programme definitive investment in the communications satellite must be considered. Engagement with the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (DTPS) were made so that a telecommunications or SITCOM Strategy could be devised. The reason for this was that DST was leasing transponders, e.g. Telkom. The exact amount Multi Choice was spending on it was unknown. However, DST was spending an excess of R5-7 billion on satellite communications, thus if South Africa were to capture a certain market in Africa it would be wise for South Africa to invest in offering the services to the rest of the continent.

 The issue of policy strategy between dti and DST was long- running. South Africa was signatory of a few conventions, viz. the Space Liability Convention, and sought to ratify the Moon Treaty, therefore the regulatory aspect as a peaceful and responsible user were quite critical. Hence, it was needed to consider if the policy itself could be migrated, as both dti and DST had space protocol, which entailed that both departments were to interact quite regularly and closely. Admittedly, there were issues of the MTCR, which was the military regime, which was where all of these were controlled, because part of the information was much too classified for civilian use. The non- proliferation sits with dti as well, including the Space Regulatory Council. Therefore, a manner needs to be devised, if possible, to delineate the regulatory aspects and the implementation of the National Space Programme. However, as far as the policy itself was concerned, it was essential that one department would be in charge of its legislative change. Additionally, DST had technically left the policy there in hope that the relevant funding instruments would be accessed within the Department of Trade and Industry (dti).

With regard to reaching out to schools, DST conducted space weeks, but notes that it was insufficient. As Government, consideration to fund public schools with programmes such as the CAN initiative was critical, because the cited CAN initiative took place in private schools and was privately funded. DST never considered establishing fully operational Space Schools, but there was consideration of Winter Schools, in which pupils could learn to build rockets during school holidays, but even such was insufficient because greater scrutiny to strengthen the science centres was required.

On AFIS, Advance Fire Information Management System, the Department had started to engage as of two years back with the Space Agency and the CSIR, particularly for the uptake point raised that was visibility in the provinces. Engagement with Gauteng Province and the Premiers Office of Limpopo was underway, which was inclusive of the Advanced Fire Information Managements System (AFIS) with the Disaster Management Centre where the Space Agency had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Some municipalities were still using the Google maps. However, DST has operational products that it was developing as an alternative, therefore it was an issue of power and exposure. AFIMS was operational, but because it was a CSI model it could be accessed by means of an App that was to be paid for. The same applies to the Bioenergy, which was an atlas that DST aspires to operationalise to national level enabling that real time information about bio-energy would become an available resource, which was ongoing work with the Department of Energy (DoE).

The Chairperson asked if there was an alternative to Google maps that municipalities could use?

Mr Mudau replied that Google maps were static. Therefore, for the sake of developing operational maps, services near real time should be engaged with. Hence, even Google was looking at building hundreds of small satellites for the sake of daily coverage to ensure real time information. However, as it is, if one was to print a geographical map from Google the date would be back-dated to as far a year or so. The building of the South African Earth Observation Centre was to ensure that data near real-time was provided for.

The Chairperson concluded that the Portfolio Committee would be delighted to visit the facilities to observe how a satellite was built and experience other aspects involved, lest legislation would be altered without exposure and the lack of participation might result in changes that could later “shoot in the foot”.

The meeting was adjourned.