Cyber Development Lead, David, talks about the opportunities for Scotland in the space sector, as well as the potential for major cyber adoption within this industry.
Having followed with interest over the past few years the development of the Cornwall Space Port, and the partnership with Virgin Orbital to bring horizontal launch capabilities, I waited with excitement for the inaugural UK launch earlier this month. Unfortunately in this instance the mission was not fully successful and failed in deployment however as witnessed with many of the larger space prime organisations, every failed mission is in fact a step closer to a successful mission.
Demonstrating the capabilities for satellite launch facilities is a great achievement for the UK sector and helps to profile the fantastic work being done across all four countries. Looking closer to home, the Scottish space sector is growing at pace with five Space Ports under development and supported by world leading manufacturing and technology development.
Throughout each of the delivery stages of the space lifecycle new opportunities are emerging for data organisations to add value. New applications utilising space data are bringing opportunities across multiple sectors from agriculture, environmental monitoring, transportation, health and fintech to name but a few and can offer huge potential across the data ecosystem.
The proliferation of data opportunities will in itself create a requirement for increased cyber engagement. ScotlandIS are currently working on a project to better understand the current levels of cyber adoption in the space sector and identify potential opportunities for support from the cyber sector. We are very keen to talk to cyber organisations currently delivering within the space sector. If you are interested in being involved, please get in contact via david.ferguson@scotlandis.com.