Research News
Launch of a Proton rocket carrying 3 Glonass-M satellites. Photo: ROSKOSMOS, www.federalspace.ru
News from the Moscow Office:
GLONASS opens up new markets
By the end of 2010, three GLONASS-M satellites and an upgraded GLONASS-K will round off the Russian navigation system GLONASS. Boasting a total of 24 satellites, the system will provide a comprehensive basis for global navigation. The Russian government expects the system to be ready for profitable application in a range of industrial sectors by 2013. The Global Navigation System programme is being coordinated by the Russian Federal Space Agency Roskosmos and will be funded until 2020: around 1.2 billion euros have been provided for research and development over 2010–2011. The Russian government is planning to deploy the system in national transport and logistics projects, e.g. for the Olympic Games in Sochi in 2014, at the Russian Ministry for Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Response (EMERCOM) and in most Russian-produced cars.
A strong emphasis is also being placed on international cooperation in order to ensure that navigation systems supplement one another and provide improved positioning data. The new GLONASS-K satellites are already equipped with CDMA technology, which is compatible with the GPS format, the Galileo system and the Chinese Compass system. This will make it easier to develop more precise multisystem navigation devices.
Russia withdraws from ISTC
The Russian government has announced its intention to withdraw from the International Science and Technology Center (ISTC) agreement. According to an order by the Russian president, the country’s membership will end in six months. The national ISTC coordinator, Rosatom, has been tasked with phasing out Russia’s involvement.
In 1992 the European Union, Japan, Russia and the United States agreed to establish an intergovernmental organisation in Moscow whose primary aim was to redeploy nuclear and weapons scientists to civil projects, integrate them into the international scientific community and help stop the migration of Russian scientists to other countries. Since 1994 the ISTC has provided a total of 814.6 million US dollars to fund 2,646 projects, many of which have involved Helmholtz research centres. The number of ISTC member states has now risen to 39.
Current ISTC projects will be able to continue as planned for up to two years. In the meantime the ISTC leadership is working on a new format for the institution. This involves, among other things, plans for a possible collaboration with Skolkovo, an innovation centre to be built near Moscow (see hermann 09/2010). This new centre could profit from the Russian and international ISTC network.
Rusnanotech 2010 in Moscow
Rusnanotech 2010, the third in a series of international nanotechnology forums, will take place in Moscow from 1 to 3 November 2010. Rusnanotech is an international platform devoted to the discussion of important issues in nano-research and the commercial exploitation of research results. It also showcases innovative methods and products. The forum is divided into two large sections: “Business” (nanotechnologies in the fields of energy efficiency, electronics, telecommunications, health, supercomputing, industrial sectors and education) and “Science and Technology” (nano-electronics, nano-photonics, nano-diagnosis, nano-materials, nano- and biotechnologies). It is accompanied by a trade exhibition.
The forum is run every year by the Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies (RUSNANO), a state holding company that has been allotted a budget of some 7.9 billion euros through 2015 and is soon to be converted into a corporation.
In 2009 more than 11,000 people from 78 Russian regions and 38 other countries took part in the forum. Germany is regarded as Russia’s preferred partner in the nanotechnology field and was present in 2009 with a large stand.
