Development of instrumentation for outer space studies in Malaysia

Summary form only given. The official opening of the National Planetarium in the year 1994 heralded a new era in space science and technology for Malaysia. The first Malaysian microsatellite, TiungSAT-1, was launched in 2000 followed by the establishment of the Langkawi National Observatory in 2005. Then the National Space Centre in Banting was officialised in 2006 and by now is equipped with sophisticated laboratories for design, assembly, integration and test of satellites, optical calibration and mission operations centre. The launch of Malaysian First Astronaut Programme in 2007 was another milestone for Malaysia which provided opportunities for Malaysian scientists to enhance their microgravity science research. From the academic perspectives, Malaysian universities have been involved with space research and educational activities since the 1980's. Besides the space science activities, a number of universities also offer aerospace and space applications programs which further develop infrastructure for space studies in Malaysia. Besides reviews of the above development, this paper focuses on recent and planned efforts to enhance capabilities of Malaysian researchers in conducting space studies. In particular, instrumentation available and developed at the Institute of Space Science, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) are described with results from some of the studies. Firstly, ground-based instruments receiving global positioning system (GPS) satellite signals are used to monitor ionospheric scintillation, total electron content (TEC) and precipitable water vapour (PWV). The set-ups have been installed in Antarctica, Iceland, UKM as well a number of other Malaysian universities. Secondly, under the International Space Weather Initiative (ISWI) of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), instruments such as Magnetic Data Acquisition System (MAGDAS), Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance (SID) monitors and Compound Astronomical Low-cost Low-frequency Instrument for Spectroscopy and Transportable Observatory (CALLISTO) spectrometer were acquired for space environment monitoring. Thirdly, radio astronomy antennas and dishes are being developed to set up a Malaysian radio astronomy observatory. This work is facilitated by the completion of an anechoic chamber with measurement facilities between 500 MHz to 18 GHz. Fourthly, a UHF/VHF satellite ground station is now installed at UKM which will be linked to Global Educational Network for Satellite Operations (GENSO) and enable future participation in the UNOOSA initiated Humanitary Satellite Network (HumSAT) project. Finally, other development efforts such as a database development initiative, are proposed, to enable the sharing of data, facilities and expertise.