Commkit – Challenge: Inspire the Next Generation
In this Commkit, Thibaut Roger (University of Bern/NCCR PlanetS, Switzerland) discusses how competitions and challenges can link education, outreach and industry.
Read article in the fully formatted PDF of the Europlanet Magazine.
Competitions to build a space-related piece of hardware or design a mission can be an amazing way of sparking students’ engagement with space sciences and engineering. While often aimed at high schools or higher education, these challenges can span all educational levels and last from a couple of hours to several months. As these activities integrate science, engineering and prototyping, it is very common to see involvement from the space industry as sponsors or mentors of participant teams.
I had first-hand experience of running a rover development course as an extra-curricular activity in a local school. One lunch time per week during a semester, a diverse group of 10-14 year olds explored concepts of project management, 3D modelling and printing, electronics and programming. Visiting the school gain one year later, it was heartwarming to find that one of the students said she plans to become an astrophysicist. I think I can say: “Mission accomplished!”
Here are some examples of current international competitions:
| Name | Organisers | Technical goal | Teams |
| ESA CanSat | European Space Agency (ESA) and national coordinators. | Launch a soda-can sized satellite analogue at about 1 km altitude with rockets | Teams of 3-6 students aged 14-19 years old, plus one mentor/teacher |
| European Rover Challenge | European Space Foundation and the AGH University of Krakow, Poland | Perform a series of rover tasks in a simulated Mars environment, coupled to a public event and 3-day conference | Over 100 teams from worldwide universities |
| EuRoC | Portuguese Space Agency | Launch a rocket and scientific payload to an altitude of 3 or 9 km (solid, hybrid and liquid fuel categories) | 25 teams from European universities |
Planetarily yours,
Thibaut
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