Why should we care about space science? - with Anu Ojha

What's the past, present and future of space science? And why should we invest in it?
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This lecture was recorded at the Ri on 20 January 2024, in collaboration with the UK Space Agency.
In this talk, Professor Anu Ojha OBE from the UK Space Agency explores the discoveries made through applications of space science, climate change and engineering and how they have changed humanity's perspectives of our position in the universe, and ask what difference space, science and technology have made to our everyday lives. Has it been worth all the money spent when facing so many challenges here on Earth? What science was British astronaut Tim Peake doing on the International Space Station (ISS) during his six-month mission there from 2015 to 2016? And will Mars ever be a home for the human race?
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00:00 Space - so what?
4:38 A demonstration of how rocket propulsion works
11:27 The largest rockets used in space
14:20 The three types of space science
15:13 Astronomy - the Hubble and JWST
18:41 Space exploration
28:33 How to keep humans alive in space
35:13 Looking at an astronaut’s pressure suit
38:29 Exploration with robotic systems
41:54 Using thermal infrared cameras to look at Earth
46:54 How space affects our lives
50:27 What’s the future of space science?
53:21 The challenges of orbital collisions and space debris
56:09 Space is becoming more competitive
57:44 The story of Mars
1:04:15 Why space science matters
1:07:15 The international future of space exploration
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Anu Ojha OBE is the Director of Championing Space at the UK Space Agency, responsible for overseeing the Agency’s inspiration and outreach activities, its international relationships and ESA policy teams, and leading on how we engage with audiences on the growing importance of space.
Anu has worked in roles within a range of space and science organisations, including as a Director of the UK National Space Centre, a member of STFC Council and a member of the European Space Agency Human Spaceflight and Exploration Science Advisory Committee (HESAC). Anu previously led the UK National Space Academy which, since its launch in 2008, has trained more than 6,000 UK teachers, with more than 65,000 secondary, further education and international University students participating in its masterclasses across the UK and Europe and in China, the UAE and South Africa. He also teaches at undergraduate and postgraduate level in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Leicester.
Anu was Principal Investigator for the Astro Academy Principia educational experiment programme conducted by Tim Peake aboard the International Space Station in 2016. He has worked with ESA as part of the team developing the high-level science strategy which underpins the agency’s ambitions for human and robotic exploration of the Moon and Mars over the next two decades and has also supported the Rosetta, Mars Express and SOHO missions. Prior to his space career, Anu was a Physics teacher, Assistant Headteacher at the largest school in England and National Lead Practitioner (Physics) for the UK Specialist Schools and Academies Trust. A lifelong lover of aviation, he is a current skydiver with nearly 1500 jumps and was involved as a skydiving and science analyst for Felix Baumgartner’s Red Bull Stratos stratospheric jump programme.
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