Decoding the Milky Way

Space scientists across the kingdom have an opportunity to test out their celestial solutions utilising a live satellite, writes Naman Arora.

The Code in Space initiative being run by the National Space Science Agency (NSSA), in collaboration with UAE-based Orbital Space, offers high school and university students, as well as academic staff, the chance to send and execute their own code on a Low Earth Orbit satellite.

Selected student submissions will be uploaded to a nanosatellite orbiting the Earth. The code will be executed by the satellite’s on-board computer and will be tested under real space environment conditions. The test results will then be transmitted back to Earth via a satellite ground station.

The NSSA added, in a statement: “Our goals are to increase awareness about current opportunities and challenges in the satellite industry, encourage solutions to current challenges faced by the industry, empower students to design and develop new concepts that could contribute to the advancement of satellite technology and to increase awareness about the Space 2.0 Revolution and its potential impact on humanity.”

Satellite communications, satellite operating systems and flight software, ground stations and ground operations, scientific investigations based on on-board sensors readings such as temperature, magnetic field, acceleration, and light as well as games and applications using satellite signals or data, are just some of the topics being covered during the competition.

In order to compete, candidates can submit their applications at https://www.orbital-space.com/codeinspace.

Each interested applicant is required to complete a number of modules to show their understanding of concepts explored in space science.

Participation can be individual or team-based and should include a mentor, which can be a teacher, university faculty member or scientist affiliated with an academic or research institution.
Visit https://www.orbital-space.com/codeinspace for more information.