THE UK Space Agency’s Space for Everyone tour reached more than 160,000 young people on its five month journey around the UK.
The STEAM tour, which featured a 72ft replica rocket, visited 13 cities across all four nations of the UK between June – October this year, on its mission to inspire the next generation of space professionals.
The tour showcased the pivotal role of space in enhancing life on Earth and highlighted the diverse career pathways available in the sector to young people from all backgrounds and skill sets.
Space for Everyone achieved remarkable success, attracting a total of 105,705 visitors, with an additional 47,600 people exploring the online tour site, and almost 9,000 people tuning into the online broadcast. 93% of attendees reported an improvement in their understanding of the diverse career opportunities within the UK space industry.
In total, the tour covered 2,684 miles, the same distance as five return trips to the International Space Station.
Visitors had the opportunity to experience interactive exhibits, hear from experts, and learn about the career opportunities available in the UK space sector from partners including the World Wide Fund for Nature, Orbex, Skyrora and AmbaSat.
Besides individual participants, Space for Everyone also welcomed 130 school, youth, and community organisations, offering them specially guided tours, further enriching their educational experiences and knowledge of the UK’s spaceflight sector.
Following the Space for Everyone tour, the UK Space Agency’s iconic 72ft replica rocket will now go on loan to Spaceport Cornwall where it will continue to inspire future generations about space as part of a free space-based exhibition.
Matt Archer, UK Space Agency Director of Launch, commented:
We’re working hard to encourage diversity and inspire young people from all backgrounds and skill sets to ensure the UK space sector remains vibrant, innovative, and above all successful in achieving our goal for the UK to be the leading provider of launch in Europe by 2030.
“Our Space for Everyone tour has achieved phenomenal success, engaging over 160,000 young people about the exciting opportunities in the UK’s fast-growing space sector and highlighting the wide variety of opportunities for individuals from all backgrounds and skill sets.“
As part of the tour, Imperial College London joined forces with the UK Space Agency to build upon their recently launched www.spaceperson.co.uk website, which highlights the range of careers in the space industry. Here, visitors can also download a range of free space-based education resources and career tips as well as an online version of the tour.
Dr Simon Foster, Outreach officer and teacher, Department of Physics, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Imperial College London, said: ‘We have been delighted to collaborate with the UK Space Agency on their Space for Everyone tour website. The space sector is a huge part of the UK economy and giving young people an understanding of the diverse range of careers on offer and how to access them is vital to ensure that we have a healthy talent pipeline”
For further information about the Space for Everyone tour and to watch the online broadcast, please visit https://spaceperson.co.uk/rocket-tour/ or follow @spacegovuk on social media.
