National STEM Learning Centre
From 9th to 11th March a group of students visited the University of York to take part in the CanSat UK Competition.
A CanSat is a simulation of a real satellite, integrated within the volume and shape of a soft drink’s can. The challenge for the students is to fit all the major subsystems found in a satellite, such as power, sensors and a communication system, into this minimal volume. The CanSat is then launched to an altitude of a few hundred metres by a rocket or dropped from a platform or captive balloon and its mission begins: to carry out a scientific experiment and achieve a safe landing.
CanSats offer a unique opportunity for students to have a first practical experience of a real space project. They are responsible for all aspects: selecting the mission objectives; designing the CanSat; integrating the components; testing; preparing for launch and then analysing the data.
Here is what one of the competitors from UHS said about the event:
It’s over!
Well, at last the journey is over and, may I take a minute to say that it has been a pleasure to work with our team. From a CanSat made from 1 weeks’ worth of pocket money, our cheap yet resourceful CanSat may not have been enough to make it into the top 3, but just enough to make it into the top 12 in the entire UK! We stayed in York for 3 days in an amazing apartment, and had a great time between the groups. Our journey may have ended, but the schools journey into this completion has only just begun.
If you would like to join this competition, then consult with Mr Rubio for further information.
By Abinhav