All budding astronauts, pay attention! UK Space Agency launches a competition for 4–11-year-olds to design a logo to go on rockets blasting off from UK spaceports in 2022

  • The deadline to submit an entry for the competition is March 11, 2020. 
  • Winners will receive a special prize and may even attend the first rocket launch
  • A second contest — designing a climate satellite — is open to those aged 16+
  • The UK Space Agency hopes this contest will spark interest in space mission possibilities










The logo to be used on the sides of the next-year’s rockets from UK Spaceports will be created by primary school-aged children.

Contests by the UK Space Agency are open to all children in the country. They will be running until March 11, 2022. This ensures that parents, teachers, and kids have plenty of time to participate. 

You can either enter a child alone or with a team of four. Submissions can include drawings, paintings and designs made on a computer.

Winners from each region will receive a special prize, while all entrants will have the opportunity to download their own personalised LaunchUK participation certificate.

The agency stated that finalist may have an opportunity to go along with other participants at the launch of small climate and communications satellites.

A second contest — which will see entrants design a satellite to help inform solutions to climate change — is also being opened to older students (aged 16+) and adults.

A competition is offering primary-school-age children a shot at designing the logo that will adorn the sides of rockets launched from UK spaceports next year

Primary-school children can enter a competition to design the logo for the rockets that are launched next year from UK spaceports.

BRITAIN’S FIRST SPACEPORT 

The UK Space Agency selected Sutherland, on Scotland’s north coast, as the site for Britain’s first spaceport.

The site is being developed by US aerospace and defence behemoth Lockheed Martin.  

The port will boost Scotland’s already burgeoning satellite industry.

Outside of the US, Scotland produces more satellites than any country.

It is hoped the UK will launch an estimated 2,000 satellites by 2030.

Following from the Government’s National Space Strategy, the UK will be the first country in Europe to host small satellite launches. 

‘Next year, small satellites will launch from UK spaceports for the very first time, helping to support our world-leading Earth observation capabilities and create high-skilled jobs across the country,’ said UK Space Agency deputy CEO Ian Annett.

He added: ‘This competition offers young people the chance to learn more about this exciting activity and hopefully inspire them to be the next generation of space talent and be part of the UK’s thriving space sector.’ 

Logo designs submitted to the competition should reflect how data collected from small satellite missions can help us develop solutions to tackle climate change.

According to the UK Space Agency, around half of the different types of data needed to accurately monitor the Earth’s climate are presently collected by satellites.

They relay regular data to scientists on such measurements as the extent of the polar ice caps, shifts in global sea levels, the temperatures of the oceans and deserts — and even counts of endangered animals like walruses and whales. 

The UK is playing a key role in three upcoming satellite missions — MicroCarb, TRUTHS and Biomass — which will, respectively, measure carbon emissions, improve climate data and monitor the health of the world’s forests. 

Sutherland was selected by the UK Space Agency to be Britain’s first Spaceport. It is located on Scotland’s North Coast. 

Other proposed locations for the UK’s spaceports are Newquay in Cornwall, Snowdonia in North Wales and — in Scotland — the Western Isles, Glasgow, Machrihanish and Shetland. 

The UK Space Agency selected Sutherland, on Scotland's north coast, as the site for the UK's first spaceport. Pictured: an artist's impression of a British spaceport

Sutherland was selected by the UK Space Agency to be the UK’s first commercial spaceport. It is located on Scotland’s North Coast. Artist’s rendering of the British Spaceport

‘2022 will be a historic year for the UK space and satellite industry, with the exciting prospect of the first small satellites launching from British soil,’ said UK Science Minister, George Freeman.

He added that ‘The strength and viability of the space industry’ is dependent on recruiting future talent.

“This contest is an opportunity for children to show off their creative skills and learn more about satellites. 

Online entries can be made via the UK Space Agency Logo Competition Website. Also, postal entries are accepted.

NASA intends to launch a manned mission on Mars in 2030s following the Moon’s first landing.

Mars represents the next major leap in human exploration of outer space.

However, before humanity can reach the red planet, the astronauts will make a few small steps and return to the moon to complete a one-year mission.

As part of the timeline for events that will lead to Mars missions in 2030, details of the lunar orbit mission have been revealed.

Nasa has outlined its four stage plan (pictured) which it hopes will one day allow humans to visit Mars at he Humans to Mars Summit held in Washington DC yesterday. This will entail multiple missions to the moon over coming decades

Nasa has outlined its four stage plan (pictured) which it hopes will one day allow humans to visit Mars at he Humans to Mars Summit held in Washington DC yesterday. These will include multiple missions to Mars over the coming decades.

Greg Williams (Deputy Associate Administrator for Policy and Plans at Nasa) presented the four-stage plan of Nasa that will eventually allow human beings to reach Mars in May 2017. He also gave an estimate on its time frame.

Phase one and phase two Multiple trips will be required to reach lunar space in order to construct a habitat, which will act as a staging zone for the trip.

This would include the Deep Space Transport vehicle, which would then be used later to transport a crew to Mars. 

A yearlong simulation of Mars’ life will also be done in 2027. 

Phase three, and fourth will be completed after 2030. It will require crew expeditions on sustained missions to Mars and the Martian surface.

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