Constellation: My Participation at the SpaceGeneration Congress and at the 64th Inter

Three current projects, which are conducted during my university research or as part of my volunteering work were selected as presentations during the 64th International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2013) in Beijing. The IAC is the most important, annual space congress organized by the International Astronautical Federation together with the International Academy of Astronautics and the International Institute of Space Law. These papers deal about "TYCHO" diploma thesis at the Institute of Space Systems (IRS) of the University of Stuttgart, about our "Distributed Groundstation Network (DGSN)" project as part of my young academic group Constellation at the University of Stuttgart and about our experiences "SpaceUp unconferences" at the IRS and other cities. Immediately before the IAC, the SpaceGeneration Congress (SGC) by the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) takes place. The SGC is gathering aimed for students and young professionals and it offers workshops and discussions between participants and experts about space exploration, space law and further topics. I was eager to also attend SGC because my diploma thesis TYCHO was the winning concept for the OHB and SGAC Scholarship of SGC 2011. At the evening of 18.09, the SGC congress programme started with the delegates' dinner in a traditional Chinese hotpot restaurant. where we participants were able to get to know each other us well as the Chinese culture. With the of the SGC on 19.09 our "Agency Working Group" stared working for three days on a novel concept about the topic "One day without Space Communication". The results were a short and a long term campaign for the general public as the target group. The first result is a cost efficient t-shirt logo campaign which displays the "Evolution of Satellite Communication". The second result encompasses a mobile game for smart phones and tablets, in which the gamer's task is to play the disaster control manager in the broadest sense of Sim City. The gamer has to deal with the consequences of the collapse of satellite communication (such as broadcast, navigation, internet) and find solutions how to repair the infrastructure. During the closing meeting on the 21.09, all working groups presented their results and recommendations were given to several target organizations of each working group. http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5471/1...b461c625_n.jpg DSC_1545 (Large) von SGAC Photo Gallery auf Flickr http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7329/1...3da623d6_n.jpg 978 von SGAC Photo Gallery auf Flickr On Sunday 22.09, I participated during the "The Role of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and Earth Observation in Disaster Management" workshop, an extra workshop organized by the YGNSS group of SGAC. During the workshop different application of GNSS and their benefits to disaster management were presented and we were taught in working with the ArcGIS software. The workshop expanded my knowledge, which I can well apply to our DGSN project. http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2877/1...ba8eea96_n.jpg GNSS and EO for Disaster Management Workshop Group Picture von SGAC Photo Gallery auf Flickr IAC 2013 opened 23.09 and it opened with a breath-taking opening ceremony. Afterwards, I attended the first plenary sessions (Head of Agencies) and technical talks. I waited to especially see the first sessions during which I supposed to get information about the plans and objectives of the different space agencies. China as the host presented their achievements in space of the last years and the Chinese space agency CNSA implied future plans. I presented the paper derived from my diploma thesis TYCHO und the title of "TYCHO: demonstrator and operational satellite mission to Earth-Moon-libration point EML-4 for communication relay provision as a service" on 25.09. The reactions and following discussions based on my paper and presentation were very positive. The constructive criticism confirmed me, that I selected the right topic with zeitgeist as my research study. A person from Shackleton Energy asked about the data-rate of my communication satellite to see if such a relay satellite could support their automated water mining on the lunar surface. My 3D transfer animation received nice comments by a participant of the University of the Armed Forces Germany and he briefly explained a similar mission they are working on. A special honor for me is the selection of my paper among all papers of the SYMPOSIUM ON BUILDING BLOCKS FOR FUTURE SPACE EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT for a peer-review of Acta Astronautica. This would not have been possible without my participation on location! http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/7RJSLFP7yyA/mqdefault.jpg TYCHO Youtube Video On 27.09, I presented two papers about "SpaceUp unconferences: a 21st century global approach to space outreach” and about "Distributed Ground Station Network - a global system for tracking and communication with small satellites as an open service" (DGSN). The SpaceUp presentation sparked a constructive discussion about the classification of unconferences with respect to other unconventional outreach methods like "Science Slams". Our purpose was to present our unconference and to get reactions like this from the scientific community. I really enjoyed presenting the advantages and how we dealt with the disadvantages of them. An additional highlight was that two organizations are interested in bringing a SpaceUp to their cities and asked for support. And we are really glad to provide help! http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/UZh7FdvRu4c/mqdefault.jpg SpaceUp Youtube video As the final paper I presented our DGSN project. I was really excited about the content of the presentation "The ITU Radio Regulations - challenges for small satellites" By Mr. Matas (International Telecommunications Union, ITU), which he presented before me during the Small Satellite Operations Session. He described the challenges of frequency bands allocation for small satellites and explained why several previous projects about connecting ground stations via the internet and offer them to remote operators are stepping into the legal grey area. I picked up this topic and explained on his explanations how our concept works. I explained how we do not bend or break ITU regulations, but how we conform to their requirements. During my presentation the absolute necessity of such a grid and service was explained with experiences of the VERDE satellite, which was designed as part of the Small Satellite Project at the IRS. The presentation gained a public reaction by Mr. Matas, that his presentation was the best presentation during this day's session. He also said that the concept of internet connected ground station would be the first that could work and is conform with respect to ITU regulations. The paper created interest by people from George Washington University (they wanted to forward it to friends at NASA) and the University of Würzburg. Additionally to the reactions about the infrastructure, several small and cube satellite groups expressed interest in using DGSN for tracking and communication with their satellites. You find our paper here on Slideshare. http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/e8KySj2wH64/mqdefault.jpg DGSN Youtube Video During the days between my presentations I attended further sessions and discussions offered by IAC as well as cultural and social events in Beijing. The rich culture of the city and the country, the really delicious food, and mainly the Chinese hospitality was a personal gain I do not want to miss. I could just have achieved this by visiting Beijing and get a hands on experience. All in all I provided my share to represent the young generation of space engineers, the academia of the University of Stuttgart and the project and research done by our groups during the most important international space congress. I am really thankful to have had this opportunity and it was made possible by a part scholarship by SGAC and the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI). If you want to know more just post your questions in this thread. This only gives you a rough overview of two weeks. You can also even support us attending such conferences or our projects by generously donating. You can watch all our Beijing videos here on Youtube. Thank you in advance, Andreas

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