Call for Portugal Space PhD Grants on Earth Observation (# of pos: 4)

The Portuguese Space Agency - Portugal Space opens a Call for granting a maximum of 4 (four) Space Safety related PhD grants (BD), hereafter referred to as PhD Research Grants, in the area of Space Safety, complying with the provisions of the FCT Regulation for Research Studentships and Fellowships (RBI) and the Research Fellowship Holder Statute (EBI).

The grants will be financed by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the Collaboration Protocol for the Funding of the Pluriannual Research Grant Plan for PhD Students, signed between the FCT and the Portuguese Space Agency - Portugal Space.

The call is open from July 21st 2021 to 23:59H (Lisbon time) of September 12th 2021.

Applications, and all the supporting documents must be submitted online using the available application form at the Open Space Innovation Platform – OSIP platform (https://ideas.esa.int ), under the “Call for Ideas on Space Safety – Portugal Space PhD Scholarships”. Applications submitted by other means will not be accepted.

All the application procedures, including submission, evaluation, results communication, preliminary hearings, claims and/or appeals, and contract establishment are performed online.

Each applicant may submit one application only, under penalty of cancellation of all applications submitted.

Providing false declarations or committing acts of plagiarism by applicants leads to the exclusion of the application without prejudice of taking other corrective and punitive disciplinary measures.

Please refer to the Notice of Call, available on the OSIP campaign page (https://ideas.esa.int ), if you wish to apply for full overview of the call information and criteria. 

Aiming to support advanced training, PhD studentships will be granted to applicants that fulfil the requirements to join a study cycle that allows to obtain a PhD degree and that wish to develop research work that allows obtaining that degree.

The research work may be carried out in any environment of production and dissemination of knowledge, national or international, including higher education institutions, R&D units, Associated Laboratories, Collaborative Laboratories, Interface Centers, StateLaboratories and other public research institutions, other Public Administration entities or private non-profit institutions developing R&D activities, companies acknowledged for their scientific and technology interest or consortia that includes any of the mentioned institutions.

The work plan must be developed entirely or partially in a national institution (studentship in Portugal or both in Portugal and abroad, respectively).

As a rule, the duration of PhD studentships is annual, renewable up to the maximum number of months requested upon application and cannot be granted for a period less than 3 consecutive months neither more than four years (48 months).

In case of a studentship carried out both in Portugal and abroad, the work plan period in a foreign institution cannot exceed 24 months.

Portugal Space PhD Space related grants are aimed at applicants enrolled or that comply with the requirements to enroll for PhDSpace related studies and who wish to carry out research towards this degree.

Applicants’ admissibility requirements

The following citizens may apply to this call:

• National citizens or citizens from other member-states of the European Union;
• Third-party states citizens;
• Stateless individuals;
• Citizens holding a political refugee status.

To apply for a PhD studentship it is necessary:

• To permanently and regularly reside in Portugal, by the starting date of the work plan period abroad, in case the work plan ofthe requested studentship proceeds, partially, in a foreign institution (in case of an abroad studentship); this requirement is applicable to both national and foreign citizens;
• Not to have benefited from a PhD or a PhD in industry studentship directly funded by FCT, regardless of its duration;
• Not to hold a PhD degree.

Application’s admissibility requirements

It is mandatory, under penalty of non-admissibility to the call:

a) To submit an updated version of your Curriculum Vitae (CV) with a maximum of 4 (four) pages, under penalty of exclusion, and an emphasis on the relevant aspects for this application;

b) To submit a detailed description of the work plan (the academic component of a doctoral programme is not considered part of the work plan);

c) To submit the supervisor(s) CV (PDF file) with a maximum of 4 (four) pages, under penalty of exclusion, and an emphasis on the relevant aspects for this application;

d) To submit one motivation letter, explaining the reasons for their application, presenting their academic/professional career path and how it is related to the work plan, if applicable; in case of also presenting the document or achievement considered the most representative, applicants should also explain this option in the motivation letter;

e) To submit 2 different recommendation letters, signed by the respective issuer; these letters should include the academic and/or professional context relationship of the candidate with its referee and should also specify that are related with this call, with letters from the candidate’s supervisor(s) not being accepted; for example, letters of recommendation can provide a framework on the maturity and suitability of the candidate's profile for the proposed work plan;

f) To present/prepare and submit the application and all related documents, including motivation and recommendation letters, in Portuguese or in English.

Information of Optional submission

The following elements are relevant, however optional, in the application form in the OSIP platform:

a) Applicant’s ORCID code. The ORCID record is recommended but does not replace the submission of your updated CV in theOSIP platform for proposal effects;

b) ORCID code of the scientific supervisor and co-supervisor(s), if applicable; the identification of the ORCID code does notreplace the upload of the CV in a PDF file;

c) Academic degree certificates, - although, if not presented, the assessment of the Merit of the Applicant (see point 6.2) will be affected accordingly – mandatorily specifying the final classification and, if possible, the classifications obtained in all the courses taken, or, alternatively, a declaration of honor testifying that the candidate has concluded the undergraduate or master’s degree by the application deadline;

d) The most representative document of applicant’s scientific/professional path as, for example, a scientific publication, conference communication, scientific report or master thesis; proof of scientific or professional achievement, performances or artistic creations; only documents written in Portuguese or English will be considered; academic degree certificates, CVs or documents illustrating applicant’s career path should not be submitted in this field;

e) Timeline, a diagram specifying the milestones and respective tasks proposed in the work plan;

f) Supporting letter, in case of external institutional collaborations, additional to the host affiliation, confirming the planned or established cooperation between applicant, supervisor(s) and affiliation institution(s).

Work plans should be focused on the specific Space-related areas described in the respective campaign on the OSIP platform. The scientific orientation of the candidate's work plan should be consistent with the topic of the call and, more specifically, with the subject addressed in the proposed work plan. 

• This PhD grant call targets the area of Earth Observation including the following topics: 
• Smart space systems: technological developments for satellite EO constellations, autonomous exploration (for example, knowing when to capture images from space), etc; 
• Use of EO satellite data and AI for application development (timelapse evolution and measurements, automatic -unsupervised and supervised- classifications, etc);  
• EO and AI in support of the sustainable development goals and climate change impacts assessment, mitigation and adaptation. 

Portugal’s goal to further expand its downstream sector as well as its ambition to develop, build and maintain the next generation of satellites and a small satellite constellation is aligned with the change of paradigm and emergence of New Space, bringing new opportunities for small and medium sized countries through the utilization of the increasing amount of space data available for the development of applications. Nowadays, existent technology enables not only space exploration for its discovery, but also for the utilization of space solutions to help solve Earth economy problems, which, in turn, promotes further development of space technology.  

Space-based technologies and services have a broad network of downstream activities as they provide more and more opportunities due to the private investments in the sector. The implementation of large constellations of interconnected satellites with multiple and integrated applications, allows acting in domains such as Earth observation (EO), satellite navigation and communications.  

The data collected from satellites – big data from space or space data – after being properly handled and analyzed, is a source of information with numerous applications. Possible uses of space data include real-time retrieval of Earth surface parameters that allows, for example, maritime surveillance by monitoring activities such as piracy or illegal fishing. Thus, developing advanced EO methods and improving analytical frameworks for big data from space are an essential step to enable the use of space data, to convert it into relevant information and potentiate its applications. 

Smart space systems have been making possible to know the universe in a more efficient way and to improve the general quality of the data gathered, so that more relevant information is delivered. This happens through the use of artificial intelligence (AI) that allows observing Earth from space and capturing data when justified. AI can be an essential asset in the analysis of the Earth and space data: given the amount of records to be analysed. AI already allows the findings of new potential mineral deposits targets, quantifying the biomass deforested in a time period, estimating the construction variation in a city through time, monitoring changes in remote places on Earth – reducing its time and personnel needed in the field –, etc.  All this is now possible due to AI recognition of small patterns and details that would hardly be noticeable otherwise. 

To invest in the scientific production/research and technology development in the most varied areas related to space technology is to participate in the process of increasing general quality of life, as space is gaining ground in people’s everyday life, The relation of space technology with social concerns becomes even more evident and pertinent when space-related services are leveraged to help achieve United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), contributing to an increase in the quality of life of a significant portion of the world's population. Goals such as Zero Hunger (Goal 2) or Clean Water and Sanitation (Goal 6), amongst others, can be supported by using EO data originated from satellite services for purposes such as monitoring agricultural land and providing information for optimal management of crops (e.g., water and fertilizer needs or harvest time) and water resources (e.g. reservoir levels monitoring). Other examples include forest monitoring (e.g., deforestation activities) (Goal 15), ocean monitoring and resources management (Goal 14) and mapping of pollution levels which would all contribute to the climate action (Goal 13). 

Criterion 0 – Novelty

For evaluation purposes, the novelty of the proposal will be addressed according to the following definition of the concept:

• The proposal needs to address a not yet described or tested, but feasible and theoretically working embodiment. 
• The proposal has to identify the features that makes it new.
• The proposal should be compared to prior activities and published state of the art.

All admitted applications must be graded from zero (0.00, minimum) to five (5.00, maximum) in Criterion 0. Applications with a novelty below 3.75 will not be eligible for a scholarship.

Once the selection of the novelty has been performed the more extensive selection based on three criteria will be performed.  All admitted applications must be graded from zero (0.00, minimum) to five (5.00, maximum) in each of the three evaluation criteria:

Criterion A – Merit of the Applicant 

Criterion A = (0,4 x A1) + (0,5 x A2) + 0,1 x A3)

A1. Academic Career

A2. Personal Curriculum

A3. Motivation Letter 

Criterion B – Merit of the Work Plan 

Criterion C – Merit of the Hosting Conditions

In order to decide the conditional granting of the PhD studentships, applicants will be ranked according to the weighted average of the score obtained in the three criteria, following the relative weighting of: 35% Merit of the Applicant (A); 35% Merit of the Work Plan (B); 30% Merit of the Hosting Conditions (C), converted into the following formula:

Final grade = (0,35 x A) + (0,35 x B) + (0,30 x C)

Applicants whose application is scored with a final grade lower than 3.75 are not eligible for studentship granting.

For an in depth description of each Criterion, please check the Notice of the Call, available on the OSIP campaign page (https://ideas.esa.int ).

Evaluation results will be communicated to the email address provided by the candidates in the application form, as well as in Portugal Space website.

Once the provisional ranked list of the evaluation results has been communicated, applicants who have an unfavourable provisional decision may use their right to dispute it during the preliminary hearing phase, which takes place within 10 working days, according to Articles no. 121 and the following of the Administrative Procedure Code (CPA).

The final decision will be disclosed after the analysis of applicants’ arguments presented in the preliminary hearing. Final decision can be claimed within 15 working days or, alternatively, appealed within 30 working days, after the communication of the final results, respectively. Applicants who choose to submit a complaint must address their pronunciation to the member of the FCT Board of Directors with delegated competence. Applicants who choose to submit an appeal must address it to the FCT Board of Directors.

The studentships will start at the 1st day of the month indicated by the applicant during the granting procedure, that must occur within six months of the date of notification of the approval decision.

The following documents are of mandatory submission, upon conditional granting of the studentship for purposes of contracting thereof:

The studentship granting is still dependent on:

• The fulfilment of all the requirements listed in the Notice of the Call;
• The results of scientific evaluation;
• The absence of unjustified non-compliance of the fellowship holder during previous directly or indirectly FCT fundedfellowships;
• FCT available budget.

The lack of any of the necessary documents to complete the contracting procedure implies the expiration of the studentship granting and conclusion of the process; applicants have up to 6 months after the disclosure of the provisional granting to present all of the listed documents.

Studentships payment will start after the signed contract is returned to FCT, which should happen within the 15 working days after its delivery.

The studentships granted in this call will be financed by FCT using the State Budget fund and, whenever eligible, using the European Social Fund (ESF), under the PORTUGAL2020 programme, in particular, under Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (NORTE 2020), Programa Operacional Regional do Centro (Centro 2020) and Programa Operacional Regional do Alentejo (Alentejo 2020), or others that may be approved, according to the respective requirements.

A monthly maintenance allowance is granted according to the table in Annex I of the FCT Regulation for Research Studentships and Fellowships, available here: https://dre.pt/application/conteudo/127238533

The studentship may also include additional allowances, according to Annex II the FCT Regulation for Research Studentships and Fellowships, available here: https://dre.pt/application/conteudo/127238533

All the studentship holders have a personal accident insurance related to the research activities, which FCT will support.

All studentship holders who are not beneficiaries of any social protection regime can use the right to social security through thevoluntary social insurance regime, under the terms of the Contributory Scheme of the Social Security System. FCT will ensure the charges resulting from contributions under the legal terms and limits foreseen in article 10 of EBI.

Payments due to the studentship holder are made by bank transfer to the respective indicated account. The monthly maintenance allowance is paid on the first working day of each month.

Registration, enrolment or tuition fees components are paid by FCT directly to the institution where the studentship holder is enrolled in the doctoral program.

The renewal of the studentship always depends on applicant’s submission, within 60 working days prior to the renewal start date, of the following documents:

All the R&D activities carried out by the grantee, directly or indirectly financed by the studentship, namely, communications, publications and scientific creations, as well as thesis, must include the reference to FCT and European Social Fund (ESF) financing. In particular, these references should mention the following operational programmes Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (NORTE 2020), Programa Operacional Regional do Centro (Centro 2020) and Programa Operacional Regional do Alentejo (Alentejo 2020). Insignia of FCT, MCTES, ESF and EU must therefore be included in the documents referring to these actions, according to the graphic rules of each operational programme.

The disclosure of research results funded according to the RBI provisions must comply with the open access guidelines, publications and other research results in accordance with FCT rules.

For all the studentships, in particular in case of European funded actions, namely the ESF, may be performed monitoring and controlling actions by national or European entities according to the applicable legislation. Grantees must therefore collaborate and provide all the required information, including answering to surveys and evaluation studies in this area, even though the studentship might has already ceased.

FCT and Portugal Space promote a policy of non-discrimination and equal access, thus no applicant may be privileged, benefited, damaged or deprived of any right or exempted from any duty. This includes ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family situation, economic situation, education, origin or social condition, genetic heritage, reduced work capacity, disability, chronic disease, nationality, ethnicity or race, land of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs or trade union affiliation.

The present call is governed by the Notice of the Call, the FCT Regulation of Research Fellowships, approved by the Regulation no. 950/2019, published in the Series II of the DR, of 16th December, by the Research Fellowship Holder Statute, approved by the Law no.40/2004, of 18th of August, in its current version, and by other applicable national and European legislation.

[1] The presentation of these documents may optionally be substituted by the in-person presentation in the funding agency, which will keep allthe elements needed for the validation and execution of the contract, including the numbers of personal identification, taxation and social security, as well as the respective dates of expiry.