Your Personal Gateway to the Future
Human beings are always in a rush. We rush because we want to know what the future will bring us. Whether it's a virus spreading across the world or a smallsat constellation, we want to know now what it will bring us tomorrow. We want it – until we finally learn that you can push the river all day long, but you can’t make it flow any faster.
But there is something you can do now to build a better tomorrow. Take part in SSPI. We are much more than the biggest membership organization in space and satellite. We are the place where past, present and future meet, greet and help generate the next wave of growth.
The Space and Satellite Hall of Fame, founded by SSPI in 1987, represents the veteran leaders of the industry – the people who have literally changed the world for the better. Our 20 Under 35 cohorts represent the emerging generation of leaders – already showing the potential to be every bit as transformative as their older colleagues. And SSPI's partnerships with student space organizations – the global Space Generation Advisory Council and Students for the Exploration and Development of Space in the US, UK and Canada – are growing the pipeline that brings innovative new talent into the most exciting technology field in this or any other world.
In 2020, SSPI will continue expanding the connections between past, present and future and turning them into programs that benefit our members today and tomorrow. We invite you to do your part as an individual or corporate member, or a sponsor of one of our events. We can't tell you what will happen in the future, but we can help make sure that you are a part of it.
Here's a look at some of what our partner groups accomplished this year through their relationship with SSPI:
SGAC-SSPI Essay Competition
The Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), the Future Space Leaders Foundation (FSLF), SATELLITE, organizers of the SGx2020, this year joined forces with Space & Satellite Professionals Internationals (SSPI) to bring one person to attend the SGx2020 on March 9, providing complimentary entrance to SATELLITE on March 10 and an invitation to the SSPI Space & Satellite Hall of Fame Celebration at SATELLITE! Learn More
The essay topic was: Changing How We See the Earth. The next few years will see an explosion of private-sector earth observation constellations operating in many different frequencies from visible light to microwave and infrared. How may this wealth of data change how businesses and governments operate, and how the world's citizens relate to their home planet?
Essay Competition Winner: Nicole Chase
Nicole Chase is currently the Director of Projects and the SSPI Project Manager of SEDS-USA. She is also the Director of the Student Space Ambassador Program of The Mars Generation. She received her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and her Bachelor of Arts in Geography from Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. She received a graduate certificate in Geographic Information Systems from Portland State University in Portland, Oregon and has been working in analytical and project management roles within the software and technology industries her entire career. While she is a current student at University of North Dakota, she aspires to begin a degree that focuses on the biomedical processes of spaceflight as it relates to biofluids at another institution.
Nicole Chase is one of the 3 recipients of the 2020 Patti Grace Smith Scholarship that was awarded during the Commercial Space Transportation Conference in January, 2020. This scholarship is awarded to students and young professionals who show promise of becoming the commercial space industry leaders of tomorrow. Nicole will be attending SATELLITE, SGx and the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame Celebration next week!
SSPI-UKSEDS 2019-2020 Satellite Design Competition: Nanosatellites
New Space is based on a philosophy of creating less expensive satellites in shorter periods of time, thanks to falling costs and technological developments of miniaturisation spacecraft equipment. Nanosatellites have demonstrated that cheaper, off-the-shelf technology still allows for large amounts of scientific return, while maintaining good quality results. Nanosatellites have been a key contributor to the commercialisation of space, where forecasts predict that by 2022, up to 75% of all nanosatellites are forecasted to be in orbit for commercial reasons.
The 2019-2020 Satellite Design Competition invites students to design, construct and operate a nanosatellite payload system with the objective to acquire as much information from an analogue lunar nanosatellite mission. Students shall create a payload concept, trade off performance parameters and pass through a rigorous review process with panels of experts within the space industry. The competition aims to reach out to students from multiple scientific fields, including, but not limited to, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers and computer science engineers.
The competition aims to:
- Challenge students to perform a complex, systems engineering task of the development of a payload to a set of real space mission requirements
- Gain exposure and experience of the typical design processes and protocols in industry projects, including multiple project reviews
- Enable students to apply taught technical skills and learn new ones relevant to a job in the space industry in an applicable project environment
- Enable students to apply taught technical skills and learn new ones relevant to a job in the space industry in an applicable project environment
- Provide students with an opportunity to develop and practice other important and transferable skills, such as teamwork, leadership and project management
Podcast Conversations with Team Leaders of the 2018-2019 SSPI-SEDS Student Competition
In this podcast, we hear from Eric Shnell, Project Manager and team leader for the winning UC San Diego team in the 2018-2019 SSPI-SEDS Competition: Designing the Robotic Space Tug.
In this podcast, we hear from Manwei Chan, Project Manager and team leader for the second-place-winning MIT team in the 2018-2019 SSPI-SEDS Competition: Designing the Robotic Space Tug.