The UK Space Agency has announced a £2.1 million investment to fund five projects to fill the space industry’s skills gap.
The investment will go towards training programmes, courses and other learning interventions to boost AI, software, and data skills.
The projects will be led by the universities of Edinburgh, Leicester and Portsmouth, the Royal Institute of Navigation, and Plastron Training – a provider of training services focused on safety in the commercial space sector.
The University of Portsmouth’s course, “Securing the Future of Space: Space Software and Data/AI”, will aim to equip mid-career professionals with tools to navigate the increasing role of AI and data science in space.
“Software, data, and AI development proceeds at such a rate that remaining at the forefront of the sector is challenging, yet these digital skills are critical to drive innovation and meet the objectives of the National Space Strategy,” said Becky Canning, deputy director (Space) at the University of Portsmouth’s Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation.
The course is aimed at existing space sector employees looking for a promotion, and to fill employer gaps, as well as professionals in adjacent industries such as military, engineering, defence, and maritime who want to enter the space industry.
The University of Leicester’s course will concentrate on sustainable space engineering, law and operations, and the University of Edinburgh’s course will focus on software and data, as well as transferrable skills (find out more, here.)
In the same announcement, the UK and European space agencies unveiled that they are strengthening work on the European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications, with a focus on the centre’s 5G/6G hub. Its attention will be on satellite telecommunications and the applications of satellite services.
The space agencies will also begin exploring the potential for a space quantum technologies laboratory, as well as developing in-orbit servicing, assembly and manufacturing of satellites – with the aim to keep satellites in orbit and prolonging their lifetime and minimising waste in space.
Source: Tech Informed