UK: The UK Space Agency and CNES signed a joint statement to scale up cooperation in space, at the UK-France Summit in Sandhurst on January 18.
The statement focused on projects for climate action, Mars exploration, space applications and Europe’s space programme.
An agreement has also been signed to enable the UK Space Agency to participate in CNES’s contribution to the SWOT (Surface Water & Ocean Topography) mission being undertaken jointly with NASA. France and the United Kingdom are also partnering on the MicroCarb programme to monitor and map sources and sinks of carbon gases. The statement signed today proposes to step up co-operation in space between France and the United Kingdom.
Alice Bunn, Director of International at the UK Space Agency, said, “The UK and France play leading roles in global efforts to explore the solar system and use satellite technologies to improve life on Earth. From missions to Mars to cutting-edge climate measurements from space, we want to build on the successful history of close collaboration for the benefit of both our nations.”
Jean-Yves Le Gall, President of CNES, said, “Since the signature of the Brize Norton framework arrangement, space cooperation between France and the United Kingdom has gone from strength to strength. The statement signed today is set to consolidate and extend our collaboration, in particular, our joint efforts to tackle climate change through the IASI-NG, SWOT and MicroCarb projects.”
In the field of applications and innovations leveraging space data and technologies, CNES and the UK Space Agency are keen to nurture space hubs and ecosystems that will help to support humanitarian relief efforts around the globe in response to the increasing number of natural disasters that are being propelled by climate change.
