Presentation Synopsis:
Alexander Kinnaird
European Space Agency
Alex Kinnaird graduated from the University of Southampton with a master’s degree in Space Systems Engineering. Working in the European space sector for over 12 years, his focus has been primarily on systems engineering and project management for educational experiments and satellites. To date he has supported over 100 student experiments to flight and 13 satellites to orbit, including some national firsts. Alex kicked off his career as a Young Graduate trainee at ESA before spending time in the Arctic circle in support of sounding rocket and balloon launch campaigns before rejoining ESA as a Programme Coordinator for University student activities. Currently he is the Programme Coordinator for the Education Office’s Fly Your Satellite! programme, which supports the development, test and launch of student satellites. In addition Alex has supported numerous other educational programmes and initiatives and continues to develop training on system engineering and project management.
“ESA Education’s Fly Your Satellite! programme and PocketQubes”
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Education Office’s Fly Your Satellite! (FYS) Programme is ESA’s programme supporting University students with the design, development, test and operations of their own satellite missions. The programme, an initiative of the ESA Academy, provides students with opportunities to engage in real satellite missions and gain practical experience in space technology development and all that that entails. The latest programme edition is now expanding to include PocketQubes as an eligible form factor.
The ESA Education Office has been supporting satellite missions since its inception and was the first ESA section to support CubeSats to flight in 2011. Fly Your Satellite! was formalised in 2013, and has since initiated three full programme cycles. ESA Education has supported over 27 CubeSat teams, including 12 to launch, some of which were national firsts.
Throughout 2022 and 2023 the Education Office has been transforming its ‘offer’, following the Agency’s Agenda 20251 and the member states’ approval of Space for Education 20302, transitioning to an even wider, more aspirational programme.
As such FYS is also evolving appealing to a wider audience, new engagement with industry, new subject matter training (including downstream application, entrepreneurship and business applications) and the expansion from CubeSats to the inclusion of 1, 2 & 3P PocketQubes. Including PocketQubes in the programme is envisioned to allow for a wider audience, allowing eligible institutions with different capabilities and access to funding to participate and move through the programme at pace which matches their capabilities and project scope.
To support this new format for ESA, a new Fly Your Satellite Design Specification has been developed– PocketQube (FDS-PQ) similar to the Fly Your Satellite Design Specification (FDS) applied to CubeSats. This new specification largely adopts the existing PocketQube Standard, while implementing lessons learned and best practice from the FYS programme as well as other sources, such as the latest Space Debris Mitigation guidelines and relevant legal and regulatory frameworks.
The call for proposals for the fourth cycle of Fly your Satellite! (FYS-4) is now open3 and is accepting proposals until the 21st January 2024.