Experts give students a look at space opportunities during Wales-first education event

The University of South Wales (USW) has hosted the first ever Space to Learn camp, with students and staff from schools across Wales enjoying a week of science education, engagement, and inspiration.

Run in partnership with the National Space Academy (NSA), it was held at USW’s Treforest Campus for students who have completed their GCSEs.

Across the week those at the Camp heard talks form a number of experts from USW and other institutions, including:

• A video message from British Astronaut Major Time Peak CMG welcoming students to the camp
• Professor Damian Bailey of USW delivered a talk on ESA astronaut training, his cutting-edge research into the brain health of astronauts, and how we can make spaceflight less harmful, and the possibility of creating habitats on the Moon and Mars.
• Flt Lt Greenwood from UK Space Command, who explained how vital space is to everyday life, and the ways UK Space Command is helping to keep it safe.
• Grant Day from the European Space Agency (ESA), delivered a talk on introduction to ESA and space missions with a special focus on Earth.
• Dr Rosie Cane from Space Wales, who gave an oversight of the space sector in Wales, showing the links between universities and companies operating in the country.
• Jill Hutchinson from Thales Alenia Space, who gave an overview of the work the company is doing across the UK, its future mission, and the career opportunities with the company.
• Neil Monteiro and Rafael Borne from Space Forge, who gave a talk about their vision on manufacturing in space, the progress to date and career opportunities with Space Forge.
• Professor Paul Roche from Cardiff University, who gave a talk on collisions in space, covering everything from the formation of the solar system, to how crashing asteroids and comets could have kickstarted life on Earth.
• Dr Zoran Jelic from Swansea University, who talked about rocket propulsion, and gave students a taste of what they might learn at university one day.
• Martin Griffiths from Brecon Beacons Observatory, who gave a talk on astronomy with a small telescope session. Students also got hands-on experience of using solar telescopes.
• Em Truman, NSA regional officer for Wales and Steffan Tudor, NSA, Space Advocate, who delivered practical sessions including comet building, infrared observing, understanding heat shields, and focusing on flight suits.
• USW senior lecturer Dr Leshan Uggalla, who focused on observing space, space-related technologies, the opportunities in space careers, and the growing impact of space debris.
• Dr Phil Charlesworth from USW, who gave a talk about Armature rocketry, the University’s Rocketry Society, and shared examples of how large homemade rockets can be.
• Dr Darren Williams from USW, who gave an insight into the robotics in space, including an overview for some current technologies in the development stage.
• Natcha Laethongkham and Faith Holbrook from USW carried out a session with the students at the Camp on how to build small, motorised rockets.
• Robert Tipping and Elango Nagasundaram from USW delivered a session on the introduction of cube sat and satellite ground stations, followed by some practical demonstrations.

During the week the students were also able to try their hand at building telescopes. They were also able to build and launch their own compressed air rockets.

Dr Uggalla said: “The week was a great success, and really brought to life the many different ways that the space sector is impacting the world around us.

“Being able to give the youngsters the opportunity to see the many different options that are available in the space industry, and to try first-hand some of the tech that they may use in future, was great to see.

“I’d like to thank the NSA for taking advantage of the facilities we have here, and all the colleagues from USW and other institutions for offering their time and expertise to the event.

“The main goal of the programme is to plant space and STEM in the students’ minds as a potential career path. And I think we managed to achieve that.”

A spokesperson for the NSA said: “Throughout the week the students also worked on a project to design a space mission. Over the week they chose a target destination in our solar system, and then came up with a question they wanted to answer on their mission.

“With their goal in mind the students planned their payload, designed their mission, and even produced a radio advert for their mission. On Friday afternoon all the students presented their missions to their peers at the camp. The missions were all brilliantly presented and well thought out, with many students discussing topics above and beyond what they’ve learnt at school.

“Overall, it was a thoroughly enjoyable week with a fantastic group of students.”

The Space to Learn camp was fully funded by the UK Space Agency (UKSA) in collaboration with USW and NSA.