Celebrating Three Years Since the Launch of SDGSAT-1

On Nov. 5, 2024, the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS) held a symposium in Beijing to commemorate the third anniversary of the launch of the Sustainable Development Science Satellite-1 (SDGSAT-1). With an aim to review the valuable experiences and fruitful outcomes since the launch of the SDGSAT-1 satellite, the symposium explores the use of space observation technology to support global sustainable development, and promotes interdisciplinary and cross-domain cooperation and exchange.

Driven by scientific and technological innovation, China successfully launched the world's first Sustainable Development Science Satellite, SDGSAT-1, on November 5, 2021. The satellite is dedicated to precisely delineating the traces of human activities, serving the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and providing solid data support for SDGs indicator research.

Since its launch, SDGSAT-1 has acquired over 400,000 scenes of global coverage data and has shared this data globally through the "SDGSAT-1 Open Science Program". To date, scientists from 104 countries have used the acquired data for sustainable development research and decision-making, resulting in the publication of over 100 SCI papers, serving the research and decision support related to sustainable development in various countries.

Csaba Korosi, the President of UN 77th General Assembly, praised the successful operation and fruitful outcomes of SDGSAT-1, stating that not only does it provide strong data support for SDG research in China and globally, but it also offers new perspectives and tools for addressing global environmental and social issues.

Prof. Guo Huadong, CBAS Director-General and the Chief Scientist of SDGSAT-1, stated that the CBAS will join hands with all parties to continue promoting the construction of a sustainable development satellite constellation, to build a more comprehensive global Earth observation system for sustainable development, and to inject continuous innovative momentum into the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Global Development Initiative, promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind.

SDGSAT-1 is the world's first scientific satellite dedicated to serving the 2030 Agenda and also the first Earth science satellite of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The satellite is equipped with three types of effective payloads: thermal infrared, microlight, and multispectral imaging instruments. Through all-weather collaborative observation, it precisely delineates the traces of human activities, providing important data support for research on indicators of human-nature interaction.

As of the end of this October, SDGSAT-1 has acquired over 400,000 scenes of imagery, with a data volume exceeding 1.7 PB, supporting 226 research institutions in 104 countries to use satellite data for SDG monitoring and evaluation, forming a wide international cooperation network. The satellite data contribute to multiple CBAS international data products, such as the BRICS Sustainable Development Data Products, African Sustainable Development Data Products, Iberian Peninsula Light Pollution Data Products.

Find more on the SDGSAT-1 Open Science Program official website.