HKUST Led Project Marks Hong Kong’s First Scientific Payload on the National Space Station

HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach Newswire - 13 May 2026 - The world's first lightweight, high‑resolution, high‑precision synergistic observatory for carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄) emission point sources – named "MUSICO", Multi‑Spectral Imaging Carbon Observatory, led by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) – was successfully launched aboard the Tianzhou‑10 cargo spacecraft on May 11 and has arrived at China's Tiangong Space Station. This is not only Hong Kong's first scientific payload deployed on the national space station, but also a historic breakthrough for the city in the development of high‑end aerospace instruments. The project fully demonstrates Hong Kong's strong capability to build national‑level cutting-edge scientific payloads, to participate in long‑term space station missions, and to play a key role in addressing global climate change while serving the nation's strategic "carbon peak and carbon neutrality" goals. The project is led by an interdisciplinary research team from HKUST, comprising experts from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the Division of Emerging Interdisciplinary Areas, the Division of Environment and Sustainability, the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and the Division of Public Policy. In late 2024, the project received formal approval from the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CSU.CAS), the general research center for the Space Utilization System. It is jointly developed with the CAS Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, and funded by the Special Call (Aerospace Technology) of the Innovation and Technology Support Program under the Innovation and Technology Commission of the HKSAR Government. MUSICO is a lightweight, high‑resolution, high‑precision greenhouse gas point‑source detection payload capable of accurately measuring CO₂ and CH₄ — two major greenhouse gases — from space. Smaller than a domestic washing machine, the instrument maintains extra-high spectral resolution and one hundred‑meter spatial resolution. By analyzing intensity changes of sunlight over specific spectral bands as it passes through the atmosphere and reflects off the Earth's surface, MUSICO identifies gas‑specific absorption features to determine gas concentrations and pinpoint individual emission sources, enabling effective monitoring of key facilities such as power plants and landfills. Prof. SUN Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government, remarked, "This HKUST led project represents Hong Kong's first scientific payload aboard the Tiangong Space Station, a major milestone for Hong Kong in the nation's space missions. The national 15th Five Year Plan identifies accelerating green and low carbon transition, building a space powerhouse, and achieving carbon peak as key priorities. The successful deployment of a payload autonomously developed by a Hong Kong research team on Tiangong powerfully demonstrates that Hong Kong scientists possess top tier research and technology translation capabilities in frontier fields such as aerospace technology and green low carbon science, providing the nation with high quality, verifiable scientific data to accelerate the realization of the dual carbon goals." Prof. Nancy IP, President of HKUST, said, "We are deeply honored that our HKUST research team can participate in scientific missions on the national space station, and we sincerely thank the nation and the HKSAR Government for their long‑standing trust and support. This project not only highlights HKUST's accumulated strengths in aerospace engineering, satellite remote sensing, and environmental engineering, but also proves that Hong Kong's research capabilities can make substantial contributions on the nation's highest‑level aerospace platforms. As the world's first lightweight high‑precision greenhouse gas point‑source detection payload, MUSICO will continue to operate on the national space station, providing autonomous, controllable, high‑reliability CO₂ and CH₄ emission monitoring data that directly support the nation's dual‑carbon goals and provide scientific backing for the 'Beautiful China' initiative and global climate governance." President Ip added, "In recent years, HKUST has been deepening its efforts in deep‑space exploration and low‑orbit satellite technology — following the successful launch of Hong Kong's first higher‑education satellite in 2023, we are now actively participating in the nation's Chang'e‑8 lunar exploration mission. Looking ahead, HKUST will continue to leverage its strengths in artificial intelligence,...