Second day of Farnborough Airshow
Do your students have the right stuff to work in the space industry? That was the question for education experts and careers advisors at the Farnborough International Air Show today, 20 July.
The Space4Careers event featured presentations from a wide range of speakers including representatives from ESA, the UK Space Agency, UK space industry and space science centres.
Today's event highlighted the resources available to young people and their careers advisors and the opportunities for jobs within the space industry. It also aimed to convey the vast range of space-related careers on offer.
With space technology touching on almost every aspect of our lives, a career in the space industry could cover anything from weather forecasting or satellite TV to spacecraft design or planetary science.
"There's more to the space industry than being an astronaut," says Frank Danesy, the Head of Human Resources at ESA's European Space Operations Centre (ESOC). "The job of an astronaut is an extremely interesting one but there are numerous other jobs in the space industry that are equally as exciting, interesting and rewarding."
Unlike some other areas of the economy, the space sector continues to prosper.
The economic success of the space industry will be one of the themes discussed during Space Day at the air show on Wednesday 21 July when the future UK and global vision for space will be highlighted. Speakers include UK Minister of State for Universities and Science David Willetts, Italian Minister of Education, Universities and Research, Mariastella Gelmini, and ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain.