BUSINESS INSIGHT
K
atherine Courtney is chief executive of the UK Space Agency (UKSA), which is sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Speaking at
the CBI’s conference in London to share the message that the UKSA was much wider than people thought, she put paid to the common perception that the agency was only about building rockets and sending astronauts into space. Collaboration between the UKSA and the European Space
Agency (ESA) resulted in Major Tim Peake’s being part of the voyage to the International Space Station and his return this summer, which generated so much excitement and interest. There was no doubt, said Katherine Courtney, that Tim Peake inspired children, and inspiring the next generation was one of the key goals of his mission. “He is a fantastic poster boy for the UK Space Agency,” she proclaimed. However, she said, “So many of the things we take for granted
every day are reliant on space: TV, broadband, mobile phones, satnavs – they’re all underpinned by space systems and assets. Even the timing signals for the trades on the London Stock Exchange come from satellites. That’s what determines whether the trade is made a second before the market closes or not.” There are also many spin-offs which benefit the business
and commercial world, from research and development to technological advances made in the space sector. “Being able to do those big collaborative missions, which
we would not be able to afford on our own, not only gives us the opportunity to do amazing space science and push out the boundaries by participating in projects such as one to record trace gasses in the atmosphere of Mars, but also means that UK-based space companies can participate in those missions and can win contracts through participation in the European Space Agency.” Other significant ESA projects include the ongoing LISA
Pathfinder mission to test technology needed for a future gravitational wave observatory, and the ExoMars probe launched earlier this year, which will search for evidence of life on Mars. Both of these have relied on significant input from companies based in Britain. Anticipating fears around future projects due to Brexit,
Katherine Courtney said that, although the ESA did a lot of work with the European Union and the European Commission, “Our membership in the European Space Agency is in no way affected by the referendum outcome. The UK has had a long-standing leading role in the ESA, we’re one of the key funding members of the ESA, and we will continue to have a leading role.” Ms Courtney revealed that she expected to have some “very
interesting announcements to make because of that” in the near future.
Preparing for lift-off The UK is now aiming for space launch capability. As announced in the Queen’s Speech in May, a UK spaceport is on the horizon before 2020. Likely to be for unmanned missions, it would significantly reduce the cost of launching satellites for UK companies. Katherine Courtney sees this development as hugely exciting
because it drives much more frequent launches. Currently, only 11 countries have launch capability. The price point for going to space is coming down, but the cap on demand is that there aren’t many opportunities to launch, she explained. If the UK can do launches, then the investment money will follow. Part of Ms Courtney’s mission is to help young people to realise that there are three categories to space:
1. Astronomy that transforms the experience of space. 2. Robotics. 3.
Satellite – looking back at Planet Earth.
As soon as young people realise this, they start to see life sciences, chemistry, engineering and STEAM subjects differently, appreciating that there is an element of space for them, and they start to understand how they will contribute to society. A panel discussion followed, facilitated by Thomas Moore,
health and science correspondent for Sky News. As well as Katherine Courtney, the panellists included Anu Ojha, director of the UK National Space Academy, Stuart Martin, CEO of Satellite Applications Catapult, Paul Kahn, president of Airbus Group UK, and Steve Smart, senior VP of space, defence, national and cybersecurity at CGI and chair of UKspace.
Copyright: UKSA-M. Alexander
Paul Kahn commented that his organisation provided
25 per cent of satellite telecoms. Innovation is part of the group’s DNA; it spends £500 million a year on research and technology in the UK and sustaining collaboration agreements with more than 20 British universities. Galileo is Europe’s civil global satellite navigation system. In
November, an Ariane 5 rocket launched four additional Galileo satellites, accelerating deployment of the new satellite navigation system. This mission brought the Galileo system to 18 satellites. Paul Kahn explained that satellites were coming down in size
dramatically and were now seen as a truly world-class product. Small satellites allowed more capability, as more could be launched, allowing us to extract knowledge, which had a value in the marketplace. Mr Kahn affirmed the real breadth to UK Space and the
demand for global communications, emphasising precision navigation and intelligent transport systems. As he explained, with 33,000 aircraft crossing European skies, there was absolutely a need for the global communication systems that Airbus delivered. He emphasised the role of data, pointing out that, as 30 per cent
of industrial output was influenced by weather, any way we could predict and analyse big data would make a difference to 30 per cent of industry. Observation, climate change and security would all be informed through such data. ➲
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