Last updated December 11, 2017 at 9:41 am
IAC2017 is a genuine treat for young space nerds, and the opportunity to get a front row seat in the biggest event of the space calendar is not going to waste.
After three full days of conferencing the excitement never seems to end! I’ve attended the fantastic opening ceremony, multiple plenaries, technical sessions, exhibition events, networking nights and the global networking forum. Every day has been packed with new information, innovative ideas, new people and great memories.
I’m proud of my home city of Adelaide hosting this conference, and what an excellent job they have done. The opening ceremony saw the announcement of an Australian Space Agency, beautiful artistic performances from dancers and an orchestra, and was hosted by the hilarious Adam Spencer.
The plenaries and highlight lectures are the key feature of the congress. These lectures include presentations and panel discussions with representatives from companies and individuals. Topics have been ranged from plans for MoonMars Villages to methods to remove space debris.
The exhibition hall has also been a hit for many, with booths from around the world. While the famous companies are all here, I’ve been most interested in the small organisations and businesses. Sure, the larger companies have money and they plan outlandish missions. But companies I had never heard of have been doing very much the same, with much greater goals, and increased passion – and a smaller budget!
The technical sessions I’ve attended have ranged from star trackers, through to spacecraft landing legs, systems engineering to planetary habitats. These sessions present research on space related topics, and given by students or industry. Each session lasts for three hours and can see up to ten presentations from individuals.
And my final highlight has been the people. The delegates of this congress are incredible, just walking around you see CEOs and celebrities at every turn. But no matter how famous they are every delegate has a story. I’ve met lawyers, fellow engineers, business professionals, scientists and physicists. Each discipline is catered for with up to 20 technical sessions at a time, covering every topic imaginable.
I’m excited for the days to come, the great knowledge I’ll gain, the people I’ll meet and the memories I’ll make.
Follow all the IAC 2017 coverage, including news and articles in the lead up to this astronautical event, and daily live videos during the Congress at australiascience.tv/iac-2017.
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