Stevenage 75th anniversary magazine | biz4Biz - Magazine - Page 32
and Space UK headquarters and is the
largest space facility in the UK, responsible
for designing and manufacturing
approximately 25% of the world’s
geostationary communications satellites.
In just the last few years, they have been
involved in orchestrating some incredible
projects. Ranging from Aeolus, the
European Space Agency's (ESA) wind
measuring satellite, which revolutionised
weather forecasting, to Biomass, set to
launch at the end of the year, which will
measure our rainforest’s carbon storage
and provide crucial data to help tackle
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climate change. In order to produce these
incredible feats of engineering, you need
skilled people with technical training.
For companies like Airbus, it is vital that
the UK has a thriving space ecosystem
in order for this talent to emerge and
flourish.
In November 2023, Airbus launched
the Community for Space Prosperity.
Known for short as CUSP, this initiative
aims to bolster every facet of the UK
space ecosystem in order to support the
S T E V E N A G E A C ATA LY S T F O R G R O W T H | 2 0 2 4
government's goal of growing the UK as
a space superpower. CUSP will promote
collaboration and partnership right across
the space community to connect, inspire
and grow the UK space sector and bring
the National Space Strategy into action.
One of CUSP’s biggest goals is to inspire
the next generation, whether that's
through the Airbus Stevenage STEM
Discovery Centre, which has welcomed
more than 40,000 visitors since it was
opened in 2017, or through its extensive
outreach programme, which visits
thousands of students a year.
