Agency
30/04/2026
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The 5th Symposium on Space Educational Activities (SSEA), held in Munich, brought together a wide community of students, space professionals and enthusiasts, and among them, a very special group: the teams participating in the third and fourth cycles of ESA’s Fly Your Satellite! programme, who gathered at a dedicated Fly Your Satellite! event. The aim was to foster collaboration and knowledge transfer, creating an environment where teams could share their status and challenges with one another.
The student teams
EIRSAT-1 team answering questions
The participating teams were:
The event was further enriched by the presence of additional guest teams. EIRSAT-1, the Irish student satellite that flew as part of Fly Your Satellite! 2, joined to share first-hand insights from their journey to launch, providing both inspiration and guidance for the active teams. Alongside them, the ELECTRA team from ESA’s Design Booster 2 programme attended to gain a clearer picture of what lies ahead on their own road to launch.
Team collaboration and knowledge sharing
AcubeSAT team explaining their mission
The occasion gave each team the floor to present the status of their project, highlight their most significant achievements to date, and openly discuss the challenges they have faced so far, and those ahead of them. The presentations proved valuable: by sharing their experiences, teams quickly discovered that many of the hurdles they face are common among them, and that they could learn from one another’s experiences.
SOURCE team showing the FlatSat upgrades
The presentations sparked constructive discussions, with teams exchanging ideas, comparing approaches, and offering each other practical advice. The open atmosphere encouraged honest conversations about the realities of managing and developing a student satellite project, and many teams found reassurance and solutions in hearing how others had tackled similar problems.
Building bridges in the satellite community
Da Vinci Satellite team illustrating their payload
Taking advantage of their presence at the SSEA conference, where all teams were also presenting their work alongside around 500 participants from across the space education community, the teams had the opportunity to both continue the conversations started during the Fly Your Satellite! gathering and attend each other’s presentations, gaining further insight into one another’s projects and progress.
As the student teams return to their respective projects, they carry with them more than just notes and slides. This event has proven the importance of maintaining the connection between teams, facilitating their progress together. They left with new connections, fresh perspectives, and the reassurance that comes from knowing that in addition to the ESA experts and industry mentors, they also have a network of fellow students sharing their space journey.
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