HYPSO-2 satellite monitors harmful algae from space

It is slightly larger than a 5-liter water bottle and orbits the Earth at a speed of 7.5 kilometers per second. There are two cameras built into the satellite, which can be quickly controlled and rotate smoothly in all directions.

HYPSO-2 has a special job, monitoring algae. Large algae blooms can cause significant damage, poisoning of drinking water and mass kills of fish.

“The new satellite means an approximately 10-fold increase in monitoring capabilities. water qualityalgal blooms and other important marine phenomena,” said Bjørn Egil Asbjørnslett, Professor and Director of the Marine and Coastal Strategic Research Area at NTNU.

“Another benefit of having satellites capture data is that it means research ships and other vessels are releasing less pollutants into the ocean,” he said.

One of HYPSO-2’s cameras is a hyperspectral camera. This means it can detect 120 shades in visible light. In comparison, our eyes and regular cameras only see a mixture of red, green, and blue. This allows small satellite to get very detailed images. An image taken from the sky can cover 25,000 square kilometers of Earth.

“The NTNU small satellite means a lot of new things for us,” said Geir Johansen, a professor at NTNU’s Department of Biology.

“The fact that we can now pinpoint exactly where they can be observed is completely new and provides great value for money. Since satellites can fly over the same fjord up to three times on the same day, we can better plan our Survey For example, if we are in the Arctic, we can obtain information about whether there is sea ice in the fjords.

Johansen is involved in the NTNU AMOS (Autonomous Marine Operations and Systems Centre) observation pyramid scheme. In Svalbard, researchers are testing how to map an area by connecting synchronized data from small satellites, drones and underwater drones.

Two satellites = ten times the data

HYPSO-2 provides researchers with sharper images than HYPSO-1.

“Also, we can now use two satellites and get up to 10 times more data. That’s valuable,” Johnson said.

The researchers used HYPSO-1 to look at the quality of the fjord sea ice, whether it was frozen, had snow on top and whether it was breaking up. Johnson said this helps them evaluate operational details, what kind of boat is needed, whether snowmobiles can be used and more.

“Better image quality also means we can discover new things of interest. For example, plankton algae, organic matter and murky water from river runoff, flood-scale rivers and glacial rivers. This gives us a lot of information about the processes Related information.

On August 16 this year, HYPSO-2 and more than a hundred other small satellites entered space aboard Elon Musk’s Falcon 9 rocket.

At NTNU, the ground staff consists of researcher Roger Birkeland and Ph.D. Student and operations manager Simen Berg watched it all with his heart in his throat.

You can see the SpaceX launch here:HYPSO-2 departed the rocket at 2:31:36.

They made contact in the evening, less than half an hour after the satellite entered orbit. The researchers couldn’t believe it was happening and that it was done so quickly and painlessly.

“We’ve gotten great hyperspectral images in our tests. And the image quality is still great,” Berg said.

In early November, the testing phase ended and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology took over the operation of HYPSO-2.

At present, low-orbit satellites have fully entered the five-year work period.

Birkland and Berg said so far, things are going well.

Berg checks HYPSO-2’s telemetry (the automated transmission of scientific data or other measurable variables over long distances using telecommunications) or health data multiple times a day. This includes checking the battery charge, whether the satellite is staying warm enough, pointing in the right direction, and capturing the required images.

And it’s in good health. HYPSO-2 appears energetic and enthusiastic about his work.

This is the second small satellite designed and built by our school’s researchers, master’s students and doctoral students. Its sister, HYPSO-1, launched in January 2022, is one of the world’s first hyperspectral satellites.

These two small satellites are Norway’s only purely research satellites.

As of this writing, HYPSO-2 is at an altitude of approximately 580 kilometers and flies over the North Pole 14 times per day. Thousands of satellites orbit the Earth, so NTNU’s small satellite isn’t the only one sending wonderful snapshots of the planet.

“But they have a lot of advantages,” Birkeland said.

They can provide images and fill information gaps in other satellite observations. They can interact with other sensor systems through the observation pyramid, contributing to ultra-efficient ocean monitoring. When something unexpected happens, researchers can adjust camera angles and download images quickly. It took less than half a second from the time they issued the command to the satellite listening.

Following HYPSO-1 and 2, which are mainly used for marine research, HYPSO-3, which is under construction, will also follow.

What followed, Birkland and Berg said, was a huge win. The satellite will be equipped with more powerful computers, more instruments, and possibly more cameras. It will see more detail and will pay special attention to lakes, rivers and waterways.

Prototypes of these instruments may be ready by spring 2025. Berg and Birkeland believe HYPSO-3 will be ready in two to three years, at best.

Norway has big ambitions for small satellites, and NTNU hopes to help the business community gain a foothold in the rapidly growing aerospace industry. Birkeland said Norwegian companies have long been content to be subcontractors on large international projects. Now he’s seeing more and more people trying to run projects themselves.

“We at NTNU are trying to figure out how to accommodate these players. The most obvious thing is that our students can go into jobs in the industry. But we are also trying to figure out how to engage with the industry in more Collaboration: Research that drives technological advancement,” Birkeland said.