- Mission Alpha, Mission Vigil, 6G Sandbox, IACTEC-Space and Faraday Rocketry, along with Agriculture 4.0 and the Master in RPAS/UAS of high performance of the University of Huelva, are some of the most innovative projects that have been unveiled during the fourth day of the event
- Andalusian universities are positioned as a reference in aerospace training with a wide range of degrees and masters related to this booming sector. This fourth day of the event has been offered by the Department of University, Research and Innovation of the Andalusian Regional Government
- University professors, lecturers and leaders in training and education have shared with experts, companies, associations, organizations and institutions the work and the enormous effort that is made from the classroom to offer a qualified workforce to the aerospace industry
The aerospace industry has a promising future in Spain. With a turnover that reached 1.2 billion euros in 2023 and the generation of thousands of direct jobs, the sector has established itself as a relevant player at international level. Not in vain, Spain is positioned as the fifth European country in permanent job creation in the space industry. Likewise, the space industry exported 887 million euros in 2023, showing the highest export intensity (88%) of all TEDAE industries.
Although the aerospace sector is booming and is contributing to consolidate the economic growth of our country, there are a number of challenges among which is the lack of qualified professionals due to the reduction of graduates in STEM disciplines. This fact represents a threat to the future of the industry that universities are trying to reverse by combining training, research and innovation to drive key technological advances.
On the second day of ‘New Space & Solutions’ it was possible to learn about some of the most ambitious projects of Andalusian universities such as the Master’s Degree in Industrial Engineering at Loyola University, which was presented by its director, Javier Brey; or the comprehensive training through the mentoring program of the CEU Fernando III University, which Betsaida Alexandre, Collaborating Doctor Professor, spoke about.
Andalusian universities, at the forefront of aerospace training
During the fourth day of ‘New Space & Solutions’, offered by the Department of University, Research and Innovation of the Regional Government of Andalusia, visibility was given to some innovative projects that will revolutionize the sector in the near future by taking advantage of the resources offered by Space to make day-to-day life on Earth easier. A good example of this is the Alpha Mission, an initiative formed by several private companies and the universities of Seville and Cadiz to design, launch and operate a cubesat called Alpha3.
It is an Andalusian artificial satellite that will operate in LEO orbit, offering valuable services to society. Fernando Muñoz Chavero, University Professor and lecturer at the University of Seville, and Darío González, CEO of Indaero Grupo Emergy and promoter of Alpha Mission, spoke about the payloads and phases of a mission that seeks, according to Darío González, “to generate knowledge in the region and promote the study of these technologies in schools and institutes, so that in the future there will be an Andalusian ecosystem linked to the satellite sector“.
“The Alpha Mission demonstrates that in Andalusia we can design and build satellites from scratch. This opens up job opportunities in the aerospace sector for many professional profiles, from engineers to scientists”, concluded Fernando Muñoz Chavero, while Darío González highlighted that “satellites can help us solve problems on Earth, such as climate change, improving agriculture or optimizing resources. Mastering this technology allows us to innovate in multiple sectors and improve the quality of life“.
Andalusia is positioning itself as a leader in the aerospace industry with specialized centers in Cadiz, Seville and Huelva, in addition to developments in Malaga, Cordoba and Jaen. “This will allow our companies to grow and offer better job opportunities, boosting the sector in Spain,” said José Manuel Andújar, Professor of Systems Engineering and Automation at the University of Huelva and director of the Master’s Degree in High Performance RPAS/UAS, who spoke about the Master’s Degree in Continuing Education in Unmanned Aerial Systems (R-PAS/UAS) taught by the University of Huelva in collaboration with INTA.
Space-controlled emergencies
Delia Rico, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institute of Technology and Software Engineering (ITIS) of the University of Malaga, opened the day by presenting the integration of 6G and satellite networks in the Victoria network in the context of the European 6G Sandbox project. “The goal of 6G Sandbox is to create a European test ecosystem for 6G networks. The Trial Network allows combining terrestrial and satellite paths to guarantee connectivity in rural areas or in emergencies when the terrestrial network fails“, explained Delia Rico, who added that “the integration of satellite networks with cell phones will allow maintaining coverage in areas with no terrestrial signal and guaranteeing communication in emergencies, avoiding failures in public safety networks”.
In this context, Alex Oscoz, head of Telescopic Operations at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, spoke about the IACTEC-Space project, a department dedicated to the manufacture of instruments for small satellites. “Among its achievements are the DRAGO 1 and DRAGO 2 cameras, designed for shortwave infrared (SWIR) observation, capable of obtaining detailed images without the need for cooling,” explained Álex Oscoz, who detailed the launch of Alisio 1, the first satellite of the IAC and the Canary Islands, equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation for “Earth observation, with which high quality images have been obtained to facilitate the management of natural disasters such as fires through smoke, flood monitoring, identification of areas affected by droughts and detection of oil spills and other environmental disasters”.
Antxon Alberdi, director of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA), and Jose Carlos del Toro Iniesta, CSIC research professor at the IAA, shared what the Spanish Aerospace Solar Physics Network, known by its acronym S3PC (Spanish Space Solar Physics Consortium), has developed over its 23-year history. “Space research lies not only in the importance of this deep knowledge of the universe per se, but also in the technological development that often reverts to society“, said Jose Carlos del Toro Iniesta about this context of space research that makes everyday life easier for citizens, not only in the field of technology and communications, but also in other perhaps less known areas such as health and medicine, environment, emergencies, security or disaster prevention.
“The research of the Solar System, which is our object of study, is fundamental for the development of technologies that are widely used in day-to-day life, such as data processing and compression or obtaining images that have, for example, immediate repercussions in medical imaging or other types of technologies,” said Antxon Alberdi, while Jose Carlos del Toro Iniesta gave some details of the Vigil mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) in which the IAA is collaborating. It is a mission that will provide a service to society because “it will be the first of a series of satellites that will allow us to know the space weather. Thanks to Vigil it will be possible to predict, for example, when solar storms could affect the Earth“.
New Space’ monitors agriculture and oceans
Francisco Javier Mesas, PhD in Engineering from the University of Cordoba, shared his point of view on the value of remote Earth observation through satellite images in the agroforestry sector, which is called Agriculture 4.0. Javier Mesas also predicted a paradigm shift: “Instead of buying technology, farmers will hire technological services, such as processed satellite images or automated machinery”. A similar theme was presented by Manuel Angel Aguilar, University Professor and lecturer at the University of Almeria, who discussed how satellite images contribute to intensive agriculture in Almeria, based on various research projects such as Greenhouse SAT, Sentinel Greenhouse and others in progress. An innovative tool that, however, many farmers are still unaware of, so he advocated for “dissemination and training” as “keys to exploit the potential of digitization in agriculture”.
Jesús Gómez Enri, Professor at the University of Cadiz, focused on the work of his research group that has been working for years with satellite data applied to the oceans and land. Gómez Enri shared some data extracted from his observations such as “the importance of bringing remote sensing closer to society“, being “necessary to reduce the gap between research and its application in society”.
For her part, María del Carmen Muñoz Rodríguez, Professor of International Public Law and Director of the AstroÁndalus University Chair in Aerospace and Astronomical Studies at the University of Jaén, detailed the role of universities as an actor involved in outer space, its regulation and norms, as well as the study of space from different perspectives, especially in the field of law. “Space poses challenges and opportunities that require a clear and adaptable regulation to the evolution of the sector. In this sense, collaboration between States, companies and civil society is essential to ensure a sustainable and beneficial use of outer space,” he concluded after his talk.
Young talent ‘made in Spain
One of the most interesting projects given visibility in ‘New Space & Solutions’ comes from a team of between 50 and 70 students from the Polytechnic University of Valencia. Francesc Coello, director of the Faraday Rocketry project, shared the work of this group of young people dedicated to the design, construction and launch of sounding rockets. “Our new challenge is to be the first European student team to launch a rocket into space and for this we have designed two models: Origin and Karman“, explained Francesc Coello, who concluded that “we are facing a key moment in the exploration and application of space knowledge. The development of the space sector will bring great advances in the coming years, with technological transfer to our daily lives“.
Tomorrow, fifth and last day -third virtual session- of this first edition of ‘New Space & Solutions’ entirely dedicated to female talent. 14 women leaders in the aerospace sector will share their experience and transmit motivational messages to the new generations through inspiring testimonials.
All presentations will be available for on-demand viewing through ‘The Observatory’, the digital platform of Medina Media Events, where each intervention will be available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, free of charge.
The first edition of ‘New Space & Solutions’ is organized by Medina Media Events with the collaboration of the City Council of Seville and the Department of University, Research and Innovation of the Andalusian Regional Government and with the participation of the Spanish Space Agency (AEE), Portuguese Space Agency, ESA, NASA, JAXA, Italian Space Agency, Airbus, CATEC, Ametic, ORBEX, CTA, B2Space, BULL, Hisdesat, Hispasat, Hi Iberia, Indaero, INTA, Airbus, CATEC, Ametic, ORBEX, CTA, B2Space, BULL, Hisdesat, Hispasat, Hi Iberia, Indaero, INTA, AstroEmociones, Novaindef, Open Cosmos, Sceye, Solar MEMS, Telespazio, WIA-E, Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and different Universities of Andalucía, as well as the PCT Cartuja.
The event is supported by Rohde & Schwarz, ALTER, Ansys, Augusta Abogados, CT Ingenieros, DEKRA, Integrasys, Kistler, Orbital EOS, PARSEC, Proexca (Government of the Canary Islands), Space-Aero, Universidad Loyola Andalucía, CEU Universidad Fernando III, among others.