First step taken in deployment of national network of Mission Laboratory facilities
Marketing
The first Satellite Applications Catapult Mission Laboratory has been inaugurated at the University of Strathclyde where it will be operated. It is the initial step in the planned deployment of a national network of Mission Lab facilities planned by the Catapult.
The lab will enable access to flight-like hardware for satellite technology providers, and is the first facility to be integrated into a collaborative network of assets aimed at developing the small satellite supply chain in UK.
The CubeSat flatsat is the first piece of the lab infrastructure which will enable the development of proof-of-concept payloads and satellite systems for future missions and satellite platforms. Additionally, it will provide ad-hoc and ongoing support for academic institutions, start-ups and SMEs, mitigating the need for significant up-front investment that might otherwise be necessary to demonstrate new technology concepts.
As one of the Catapult’s new Regional Centres of Excellence, Strathclyde University is hosting the lab, thereby providing easier geographic access to technology providers in the northern part of the UK.
“The inauguration of the Mission Lab represents the first step in the planned deployment of a national network of Mission Laboratory facilities, supported by the Catapult,” explains Stuart Martin, CEO of the Satellite Applications Catapult. “Along with the launch of our Scottish Regional Centre of Excellence, these are great opportunities to address markets such as Oil & Gas or Future Cities, with future small missions concepts resulting in unprecedented space data and applications.”
