QUEZON CITY - The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) have officially signed the memorandum of agreement on the transition of Space Science and Technology Assets (SSTA) from DOST to PhilSA on Monday. DOST and PhilSA entered into the agreement to cooperate on the joint operation, transition and turnover of SSTA Projects to PhilSA. Both agencies will continue to collaborate and work together to facilitate the smooth joint operation of the Philippine Earth Data Resource Observation (PEDRO) Center, Remote Sensing and Data Science or DATOS, Synthetic Aperture Radar with Automatic Identification System or SARwAIS Project, and the Ground Receiving, Archiving, Science Product Development and Distribution or GRASPED Project, which are being maintained or implemented by the DOST Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI). The joint operation means both agencies will have access to the process, functions, and systems of the mentioned services and projects; and is expected to effectively facilitate the eventual transfer/turnover of these projects and services to PhilSA. "Today, we leave all these infrastructures, all these capabilities in the hands of the Philippine Space Agency, confident that they will further cultivate it as we've intended. However, expect the DOST to continue working with PhilSA and other government agencies as we continue to collaborate with them on space activities and through cooperative use of our existing science infrastructures such as our high-performance computing facility and our national research and education network," DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Pena said. DOST-ASTI Director Franz de Leon said: "We have had our place in space even before PhilSA came into fruition, and DOST will always be working hand-in-hand with Philippine Space Agency by providing relevant science and technology innovation in space R&D." (PR) }