📋 Tender Overview
ANALOG MISSION. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. welcomes the Filipino Analog Astronauts during a courtesy call at Malacañan Palace in Manila on Thursday (Sept. 24 2026). During the courtesy call the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the Filipino Analog Astronauts discussed analog missions upcoming PhilSA programs and opportunities to further develop Filipino capabilities in space science and technology including preparations for human spaceflight. (Photo courtesy of Bongbong Marcos Facebook)
MANILA – The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) on Friday conducted a 24-hour analog mission at the Batangas State University as part of its efforts to develop Filipino capabilities in human spaceflight research and mission operations.
In a statement on Friday the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said at least 11 individuals participated in the Analog Habitat Waypoint (ANAHAW) a university-based analog mission organized by PhilSA from Sept. 25 to 26.
Six participants served as the primary crew experiencing simulated conditions of living and working in a lunar habitat while five other members were part of mission control who are monitoring the mission and providing technical advice.
The analog mission was carried out after the PhilSA and four Filipino analog astronauts made a courtesy call on President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. at Malacañan Palace in Manila.
The Filipino analog astronauts who paid a courtesy call were Kristine Jane Atienza a nutrition specialist from Bataan; Dr. Marvic Jon Alcantara a medical specialist from Cavite; Florence Pauline Basubas a space biologist from Cebu; and Dr. Mark Angelo Purio a space engineer from Oriental Mindoro.
“It is not every day that I get to talk about space in Malacañang” Marcos said in a Facebook post.
“Our Filipino analog astronauts are already testing here on Earth what it takes to live and work beyond it. I look forward to the day when a Filipino takes that science all the way to space” he added.
The PCO noted that the four Filipino analog astronauts have participated in missions and training programs in different countries.
Atienza joined Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) program and received suborbital spaceflight certification from the National Aerospace Training and Research Center in Pennsylvania.
Alcantara became the first Filipino medical doctor to serve as an analog astronaut and has participated in missions in Hawaii and Australia.
Basubas served as executive and medical officer for the Monsaraz Mars Analog Mission in Portugal while Purio became the first Filipino engineer analog astronaut through the LunAres Mission M4.26 in Poland. Purio was also involved in the development of the Philippines’ Maya-2 cube satellite.
ANAHAW 2.0
During the courtesy call Marcos was briefed on PhilSA’s plans to develop more analog missions to prepare Filipinos for future human spaceflight opportunities.
PhilSA Acting Director General Gay Jane Perez said the agency is tapping Filipino analog astronauts with trainings abroad to help develop similar missions in the Philippines.
Perez said PhilSA is eyeing the expansion of the program dubbed as ANAHAW 2.0 with analog missions to be conducted at several universities in 2027.
He noted that the space agency is also planning a two-week professional all-Filipino analog mission in 2027 potentially at the LunAres Research Station in Pi?a Poland or the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah United States.
Perez said an all-Filipino crew would provide an opportunity to study how Filipinos work together under the isolation confinement and resource limitations experienced during space missions.
“There will be new observations that will be made. How will Filipinos in a confined environment survive? But we think there are values that will prevail – bayanihan (teamwork) –and this is something that the international community can also learn from us” Perez said.
Astronaut program
The PCO said PhilSA is also developing a three-year astronaut program that would include a nationwide search for participants a two-week all-Filipino analog mission and a rigorous and competitive selection process for astronaut candidates.
“At the same time Filipino scientists will develop science experiments that could eventually be conducted in space” it said.
Under the proposed timeline Perez said PhilSA could have an astronaut candidate and a high-impact scientific experiment ready for launch by the end of 2029.
Perez added that emerging commercial human spaceflight opportunities could potentially accelerate the timetable and open earlier opportunities for a Filipino to travel to space. (PNA)
