Irish education event inspires young minds about space
Space education in Ireland received a boost this week as ESA travelled to Dublin to participate in an event designed to encourage the next wave of Irish scientists and engineers.
Thousands of pupils from schools across Ireland attended ESB Science Blast – which is one of the largest educational programmes of its kind in Europe – to immerse themselves in a fun-filled celebration of science and learn about the challenges they could help to tackle in future decades.
For weeks, groups of schoolchildren have been busy preparing for the event by creating their own innovative projects to investigate a number of fascinating subjects, including the use of fingerprints in forensic science, the role of colour in human memory – and even the formation of black holes.
During the past four days, kids presented their findings to expert judges, who used their knowledge to provide guidance and encouragement to these aspiring innovators.
The success of these projects was celebrated by several key figures who attended ESB Science Blast, including the Irish Minister for Education.
Alongside the presentations, the event was packed with exciting exhibits and demonstrations, including an entire zone dedicated to space that hosted ESA, many Irish space companies, and students from universities in Ireland.
In the decades to come, the schoolchildren of today will be tasked with continuing the global drive to tackle the climate crisis, so ESA dispatched a team from its Climate Office to the event to showcase the importance of space data in addressing this challenge.
Kids enjoyed a demonstration that revealed how space missions are tracking different aspects of the environment, including the atmosphere and Earth’s icy zones. This data is informing policy that aims to accelerate global climate action.
Also on show was ESA’s Climate from Space app, which enables people to observe the long-term changes impacting the planet through the eyes of Earth observing satellites.
During the event, ESA's education team took students on a quick tour of space, launching from Earth to the International Space Station, on to the Moon, and back again. Kids learned about humankind's orbital outpost, plans for future exploration and what a future career in space might hold.
With the support of the agency’s education programme, students at University College Dublin are developing an educational CubeSat named EIRSAT-1, which is set to be the very first Irish spacecraft to reach orbit.
The students who are leading EIRSAT-1 travelled to ESB Science Blast to highlight the mission’s objectives and the challenges of building a flight-ready satellite from scratch.
The EIRSAT-1 team were part of the “Ireland in Space” stand, which highlighted future career opportunities in the space industry to the young attendees.
The stand hosted many Irish firms, including EnBio – which delivered a surface coating for the sun-observing Solar Orbiter mission – and Realtra Space, which is developing technology for an upcoming Ozone-studying remote sensing satellite.
These companies were joined by 13 doctoral, masters and undergraduate students in space science subjects from University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin and Dublin City University.
ESA Champion for Education Niamh Shaw worked closely with the event's stakeholders and contributors to bring the “Ireland in Space” stand to ESB Science Blast.
Held from 27 February to 2 March, ESB Science Blast is a STEM promotional programme developed and delivered by the Royal Dublin Society, and backed by title sponsor ESB, which is Ireland’s leading energy utility company with operations spanning electricity generation, transmission and distribution, and energy supply.
