Vol. 33. No. 2 A Publication of UMA, Inc April – June 2010 Editor: Daniel Gomes, 4394 N. Sweetbriar Ct, Concord, Ca 94521 E-Mail: [email protected] Dr. Fred Prata Senior Scientist with the Norwegian Institute for Air Rese arch Iceland's ongoing eruption is likely to press the case for new satellite instruments to monitor volcanic ash thrown into the atmosphere. Remote sensing expert Dr Fred Prata told a major Earth Sciences meeting in Vienna that current monitoring from space was good but could be improved. "Of the present suite of satellite instruments, none were developed for the volcanic ash problem," he said. "Therefore, they are sub-optimal for detecting and determining quantities of volcanic ash." Dr. Fred Prata is a senior scientist with the Norwegian Institute for Air Research, and leads a group called SAVAA - Support to Aviation for Volcanic Ash Avoidance. He was born in Hong Kong in the 60s’ to Alfred and Martha Prata. He completed his Primary and Secondary School education in Hong Kong and completed his Post Doctoral studies at the Oxford University in England where he graduated with a PhD in Physics. He is the nephew of Manuel Prata, a member of the HKVDC, who was arrested and taken by the Japanese Kempeitei from the Argyle Street Prisoner of War camp, accused of being part of a secret British Army Aid Group operating in the camp to assist British Prisoners of War to escape to Free China. He was tortured and then executed by the Japanese in Stanley Prison. Dr. A. J Prata (Fred) holds dual Australian and British citizenships. He led the Remote Sensing Team at CSIRO, Division of Atmospheric Research in Australia from 1984 to 2006. He is a specialist in the physics of remote sensing of the atmosphere and has published papers and books on atmospheric temperature retrievals, the dynamics of travelling waves in the stratosphere, remotely sensed land surface temperatures and infrared retrievals of volcanic aerosols and gases. Educated at Imperial College, London University and the University of Oxford, Dr Prata has had more than 20 years experience in utilizing satellite-borne instruments to probe the earth's atmosphere. He has been involved in the satellite programs of Nimbus 5, Nimbus 6, ERS-1 and ERS-2 and more recently with ADEOS-I and -II and the Terra platform. Dr Prata is a Principal Investigator on several international space related projects including ESA's ENVISAT program, NASDA’s ADEOS-II and is a Co-Investigator on two NASA projects. Currently his main interests lie in the utilization of high spectral resolution infrared measurements of atmospheric trace gases and aerosols to study and quantify their effects on climate, as well as on-going technology commercialization activities. Dr Prata left the CSIRO in Australia in 2006 to become more involved with the European remote sensing community and is currently working at NILU in Norway. Dr Prata resides in Leirsund, Norway and is married with three children. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Summer Issue 2010 Page 1 of 36 Dr. Prata Dr. FRED Prata was flicking through some satellite pictures one day when he saw a "funny looking cloud". It got him thinking. A few years later, that train of thought produced a piece of technology worth tens of millions of dollars — possibly hundreds of millions — every year to the international airline industry. Developed for the CSIRO, and now being picked up by Tenix., Dr Prata's baby has some pretty useful capabilities. By detecting volcanic ash in the atmosphere, it can stop planes falling out of the sky. By sniffing out other atmospheric nasties like sarin gas, it offers a defense against chemical attack. In both instances, it could save many lives. Dr Fred Prata contemplates a new life in Norway. Photo: Simon O'Dwyer A few days ago Dr. Prata told, one of his relatives, that the entire episode of the closure of European airspace for 6 days could have been avoided if his Space Sensors were fully implemented by the governments in Europe. Many airports and planes could have continued flying. His team is supported by the European Space Agency and aims to improve the way that satellite data is collected for use in the dispersion models that help airlines and the authorities decide whether it is safe to fly planes. "Once we get the thickness, combining that with our two-dimensional picture of the mass loading we can get the concentration; and that's the number that the airlines would like to have." The airlines at this time are working to a safe limit of two milligrams of ash per cubic meter of air. The current tracking satellites circle the Earth and do not have permanent vision over Iceland and the rest of Europe. A version of Iasi is due to go on the next generation of Meteosats but the first of these platforms will not fly until 2018. Dr. Prata now believes there is a case to be made to fast-track the launch of this instrument. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Summer Issue 2010 Page 2 of 36 I am pleased to announce that the members have approved, by an overwhelming majority (161 yeas and 56 nays), the Amended and Restated Bylaws of União Macaense Americana (UMA, Inc.) as published in the January-March 2010 UMA News Bulletin. Parliamentary Law & Procedure and Article 13.1 of our Bylaws require the approval of the membership before adoption and ratification of these Bylaws facilitating the conduct of business and promoting harmony and cooperation within the organization. As we complete our first six months as a unified entity, UMA is operating smoothly and efficiently. We have held three functions with the highest level of participation from the membership – 70 persons in the All Day Social in February, full busload of 58 for the April Reno Trip and 77 bowlers and friends in the UMA Bowling Tournament & BBQ on May 22nd. These successes were achieved by the dedication, hard work and enthusiasm of the Social and Sports Committees and, managing our budget carefully, we even made a small profit at each of the events. Elections will be held this fall for the new UMA Officers and Board of Directors for the 2011-2012 term. I would urge our members to take an active role and volunteer to serve as an officer, director or on the various committees of UMA. As we have said many times before, we need our young people with new energy and ideas to steer our club in the twenty-first century. The Nominations Form for the positions of Officer and/or Director appears on page 11 of this Bulletin. Please be sure to obtain approval of the person/persons you are nominating before submitting their names to the Nominating Committee. The UMA Travel Committee has selected a travel agent for attendees to the 2010 Encontro das Comunidades Macaenses to be held Nov 28 to Dec 5, 2010. The flyer for the various travel options is in the Bulletin on page 9. Please note that all UMA members are invited to the Encontro. However, if you plan to make your own way to Macau, it is important that you register with Maria Gomes, Chairperson of the Travel Committee, so that your name will be on the list of UMA Encontro participants transmitted to the Macau Organizing Committee. You will then be included in the activities and functions of the Encontro. Our Cookoff to select our representative for the Confraria Gastronomia Macaense was held on Sunday, June 6, 2010. at the home of Maria Gomes. There were four participants: Ed de Assis, Flavia Greubel, Ken Harper and Sandy Souza. As part of the contest, the participants were asked to cook Porco Bafassá, another Macanese entrée and dessert of their own choosing. The dishes were prepared by the cooks in their own kitchens, and then brought to the home of Daniel & Maria Gomes where our panel of expert judges including Luis Ozzie Ozorio, Jorge Remedios and Vilma Remedios were waiting eagerly to taste the food in a blind test. The winner of the Cook-off is Ken Harper, who will be the UMA Gastronomia Representative at the 2010 Encontro in Macau. More on the Cookoff in the Bulletin. The Scholarship Committee is pleased to announce that the 2010 UMA Scholarship has been awarded to Charles Goff, grandson of Virginia Ribeiro Goff. Charles graduated from Corona High School in Norco , California this June, and has been accepted into Chapman University , Orange , California where he intends to pursue a degree in Business Administration. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Summer Issue 2010 Page 3 of 36 President’s Message ɳ I would like to draw your attention to the flyers on pages 16-19 of the UNB for our four upcoming summer events: UMA Thanksgiving Mass on Saturday, July 24, 2010; UMA Golf & Dinner on Sunday, July 25, 2010; the highlight of the year, our Dinner Dance “UMA NOITE MACAENSE” on Saturday, August 21, 2010; and All Day Social on Saturday, Sept 11, 2010. It is recommended that you sign up early and return the slips at the bottom of the flyers on a timely basis as capacity is limited in some of the events and will be first come first served. For our Southern California members, there will be a social on July 11, 2010 from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM. The event will be held at Gloria Sequeira's home in Downey. The video “ Patuá di Macau – Unde Tá Vai?” will be shown at about 3:00 PM to be followed by a Tacho/Minchi dinner.