Beyond limits
HUMAN
Since she arrived at Surrey 14 years ago, Professor Yang Gao has been integral to Surrey’s ground-breaking research in the field of space robotics. Now, as Director of the Surrey-led FAIR-SPACE programme, her work will contribute to a new era of space exploration.
Space is a very hazardous place, which means that sending astronauts into orbit is a dangerous as well as expensive business. One solution is to create space robots which can act as ‘proxies’ for humans, performing complex tasks in space with minimal dependency on a ground crew. This is the essence of Professor Gao’s work at Surrey, and the vision of FAIR-SPACE, the UK National Hub of Research Excellence on Future AI and Robotics for Space.
Launched in November 2017, the FAIR-SPACE hub aims to establish the UK as a leading nation in the development of robotics and autonomous systems for space. The programme is funded by a £6.9m grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the UK Space Agency, and includes major industry partners such as Airbus Defence and Space, and Surrey Satellite
Technology Ltd – the Surrey spin-out which is now the world’s leading commercial small satellite company.
The decision to base the FAIR-SPACE hub at Surrey reflects four decades of research within the University’s Surrey Space Centre and the expertise of academics such as Professor Gao, also Head of the STAR (Surrey Technology for Autonomous systems and Robotics) lab.
Professor Gao’s own journey into space engineering began when she saw an opportunity to explore the potential of her PhD specialism – AI robotics. Moving from Singapore to Surrey, she took the role of Technical Lead on a European Space Agency (ESA) project which aimed to investigate whether AI technologies developed for industry could be translated to the space sector.
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Forever Surrey 2018
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