Rogel Mari D. Sese is a Filipino astrophysicist who is known for being a proponent of space science in the Philippines.

Early life and education

According to Sese himself, he decided to pursue a career related to space science as early as when he was five years old. His mother was biological sciences professor at the

University of the Philippines Los Baños The University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB; fil, Unibersidad ng Pilipinas Los Baños), also referred to as UP Los Baños or colloquially as Elbi (), is a public research university primarily located in the towns of Los Baños and Bay ...

(UPLB) taught him in biology such as on how to splice a DNA but did not find sufficient interest in the field. He attended

University of the Philippines Rural High School The University of the Philippines Rural High School was established as a subsidiary of the Department of Agricultural Education (DAE, now Department of Agricultural Education and Rural Studies or DAERS) of the University of the Philippines College ...

. Sese having developed interest in physics while in high school pursued a degree in

applied physics Applied physics is the application of physics to solve scientific or engineering problems. It is usually considered to be a bridge or a connection between physics and engineering. "Applied" is distinguished from "pure" by a subtle combination ...

at the UPLB which he believed to be the closest to an

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline said, Astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the nature of the h ...

degree since he was not able to find a university which offers such degree at that time and decided to specialize in instrumentation development and design. He attained his master's degree at the Diliman campus of the same university. He pursued a doctorate degree in physics at the

University of Tsukuba is a public university, public research university located in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, Ibaraki, Japan. It is a top 10 Designated National University, and was ranked Type A by the Japanese government as part of the Top Global University Pro ...

in Japan and took computational astrophysics as his specialization. He attained his doctorate degree in 2009 and moved back to the Philippines in 2011.

Career

After graduating from the University of the Philippines Diliman, Sese worked at the Los Baños campus as an instructor. He briefly stopped teaching to pursue a doctorate degree in Japan. As one of the only three astrophysicists in the Philippines as of 2017, Sese joined the Department of Science and Technology and served as the head of the National Space Development Program which was launched in order to set up the foundation of a future space agency. He also set up his own firm, Regulus SpaceTech Inc. which is involved in space

research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...

, education and consultancy. He also promoted the teaching of space education in high schools and elementary schools through the Philippine Space Science Education Program (PSSEP) which also led to more universities in the Philippines to offer degrees in

aerospace engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is si ...

and also lobbied for legislation related to space science. He contributed to the writing of the proposed legislation "Act Establishing the Philippine Space Development and Utilization Policy and Creating the Philippine Space Agency" which aims to establish a national space agency. Sese along with 7 other Filipino scientists were included in Asian Scientist 100 (AS100) list released in March 2018 which recognizes the contribution of individuals in Asia in the field of science and technology. Their inclusion was recognized by the

Senate of the Philippines The Senate of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines with the House of Representatives as ...

via a resolution. Sese is currently affiliated with

Ateneo de Davao University , mottoeng = Strong in Faith , type = Private Catholic Research Non-profit Coeducational Basic and Higher education institution , established = , founder = Society of Jesus , religious ...

(ADDU) and is the current department chairperson of the Aerospace Engineering department. He is also a member of Ateneo de Davao University's board of trustees. He is currently leading a satellite internet project in ADDU, the ACCESS Mindanao project.

Personal life

Sese is married and has two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sese, Rogel Mari Living people Filipino astrophysicists Filipino expatriates in Japan People from Laguna (province) University of the Philippines Los Baños alumni University of the Philippines Diliman alumni University of Tsukuba alumni Year of birth missing (living people)