Students from Yeshivat AMIT Amichai were recently chosen to take part in the flagship project of Israel’s Science, Technology and Space Ministry, helping to conduct research using images taken by a mini-satellite launched into space in 2017.
The students research is part of the Earth observation program and is aimed at understanding and solving problems related to overcrowding on our planet, as well as issues related to water, food, pollution, and natural disasters. The images are produced by the Venus satellite, which AMIT Amichai students also helped launch into space.
Venus (which stands for Vegetation and Environment monitoring on a New Micro Satellite) is a joint effort between France’s National Center for Space Studies (CNES) and Israel’s space agency, but all of its parts were manufactured in Israel.
The satellite has been photographing specific sites across the world every two days for two-and-a-half years in an effort to better understand the impact of climate change on ecosystems and agriculture.
Rabbi Alon Elharar, the program’s coordinator, and the students meet regularly with industry experts and academics who guide them as they conduct their research about space and satellite imagery.
Rabbi Shimon Shoshan, head of the yeshiva, said this program gives students “an extraordinary opportunity for scientific, academic, and professional learning at the forefront of science and the science of space.”
