UK SPACE AGENCY

Wales will play host to the UK Space Conference 2019 (24-26 September). This biennial flagship event brings together the entire space community, including government, industry, academia, research and financial communities. The conference will offer the space community unrivalled opportunities to meet, network, do business and shape the landscape for the coming years. Register now: https://www.ukspace2019.co.uk/ereg/newreg.php?eventid=200183909

SatelLife is a competition run by the UK Space Agency for 11-22 year olds to come up with innovative ideas of how satellites can help us here on Earth. The UK Space Agency is at the heart of UK efforts to explore and benefit from space. It is responsible for all strategic decisions on the UK civil space programme and provides a clear, single voice for UK space ambitions. The Agency is responsible for ensuring that the UK retains and grows a strategic capability in the space-based systems, technologies, science and applications. It leads the UK’s civil space programme in order to win sustainable economic growth, secure new scientific knowledge and provide benefits to all citizens.

In the early hours of tomorrow morning (Saturday 20th October) a spacecraft made possible by the best of UK space science is set to blast off bound for Mercury. BepiColombo is the first European Space Agency mission to Mercury, the least explored planet in the inner Solar System, and will provide new insight into how the planet closest to the Sun formed and evolved. The spacecraft will travel 9 billion km taking 7 years to reach Mercury and is designed to survive extreme temperatures, from +450 to -180 degrees.

Full story and resource: https://bit.ly/2C1IzcS The UK Space Agency has joined a campaign to encourage more girls to study science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM ) and consider careers in space. Working with the WISE Campaign’s People Like Me initiative, the Agency has helped produce a resource pack for schools to boost the recruitment of girls into STEM subjects post-16, particularly those that girls typically do not choose, such as physics and engineering.

Seeds from Isaac Newton’s apple tree, which were blasted into space with Tim Peake, are now young trees and in need of a new home. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/newtons-space-saplings-can-you-give-them-space-to-grow

Hundreds of worms are being flown to the International Space Station later this year for scientists to understand more about spaceflight-induced muscle loss.

New research using worms will look at muscle loss in space and could lead to new treatments for muscular conditions for people on Earth.

Flying at 200 miles above the surface of the Earth, the powerful laser on the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Aeolus spacecraft will beam down into the atmosphere and measure wind speeds – a completely new approach that could revolutionise the accuracy of weather forecasting, helping to protect people from disasters like floods and hurricanes across the world. The spacecraft was built by Airbus Defence and Space in Stevenage. Other British businesses provided critical elements to the mission, including a camera, software and propulsion systems. The substantial extent of UK participation was achieved through the UK Space Agency’s strong, ongoing support of ESA’s Earth Observation Envelope Programme, which benefits industry and science. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/british-built-laser-spacecraft-due-to-be-launched-into-orbit Professor John Remedios (Director of National Centre for Earth Observation) and Beth Greenaway (Head of Earth Observations and Climate at the UK Space Agency) talk about Aeolus, the brand new mission to track winds on a global scale and discuss the importance of collaborating with ESA on such major missions.

A video to celebrate #IWD2018 with women from across the space sector. Here's some expert advice from our #WomenInSpace on pursuing a career and why it's such an exciting sector.

The UK Space Agency is offering young people expert advice for their ideas of how satellites could improve life on Earth and a share of a £50,000 prize. If you know an 11-22 year old with big space ideas, ask them to enter our SatelLife Challenge today. http://bit.ly/2CDbVNa

A video summary of human spaceflight expeditions 46 & 47 for the #Principia post-flight tour events. Credits: Video editing: Maxime Pinchaud. Thanks to: Matthew Day. Footage: Tim Peake, ESA, NASA.

Bear Grylls, Chief Scout and one of the World's most recognised faces of survival and outdoor adventure has sent Tim Peake his best wishes on behalf of all UK Scouts.

British ESA astronaut Tim Peake answers questions on biology experiments he is doing in space, and what more might be possible in future from Jo Johnson MP, Minister for Universities and Science and others.

UK ESA astronaut Tim Peake wishes you a Happy Saint David's Day from the International Space Station.

Tim Peake sends a special message to Scotland's Hogmanay celebrations from the International Space Station on 31 December 2015. To find out more about the Principia mission in the UK, visit: www.principia.org.uk To learn more about Tim's mission to the ISS, visit: www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Human_Spaceflight/Principia UK Space Agency: www.gov.uk/ukspaceagency European Space Agency: www.esa.int

Happy New Year from the International Space Station! Tim Peake wishes the UK - and the rest of planet Earth - all the best for the year ahead from the International Space Station. To find out more about the Principia mission in the UK, visit: www.principia.org.uk To learn more about Tim's mission to the ISS, visit: www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Human_Spaceflight/Principia UK Space Agency: www.gov.uk/ukspaceagency European Space Agency: www.esa.int

With exactly one week to go before British ESA astronaut Tim Peake leaves Earth, he has taken a moment to thank the Principia educational partners who are bringing his mission to school children across the UK.

The UK Space Agency has teamed up with LEGO Master Builders at Bright Bricks to reconstruct the Orbital Module of the Soyuz Capsule. The Soyuz capsule is the Russian space craft which transports astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station. It is currently the only way astronauts can get into space. British ESA astronaut, Tim Peake will be travelling in one for his own launch. This is your opportunity to see what a Soyuz looks like made out of those iconic coloured bricks!

Commentators from across the UK Space industry are celebrating the success of the UK Space Conference 2015, which brought more than 1,000 delegates to Liverpool.