Aberystwyth Centre for Space and Earth Monitoring(ACSEM)
Environment Systems together with Aberystwyth University has formed the Aberystwyth Centre for Space and Earth Monitoring (ACSEM), a research facility fully aligned with Welsh and UK Government space strategy. ACSEM aims to be recognised as an international centre of excellence fostering research and collaboration across industry and government. ACSEM will support job creation and entrepreneurial start-ups and provide an education and training resource.
The UK government has set out to achieve a 10% share of the global space economy forecast to be worth £40bn by 2030. The downstream segment of space-enabled applications and services such as Earth observation (EO), navigation and communications is forecast to reach £37bn with upstream activities, primarily building and launching satellites, £3bn. Wales is aiming to be a strategic asset supporting growth within the UK space sector to generate 5% of UK industry turnover by 2030 – £2bn per annum.
While developing the Aerospace Wales Forum’s Wales Space Strategy the Welsh Space Academic Partnership (WASP) carried out a review of space activity across Wales and identified a number of regional assets. EO instrumentation, processing and data analysis at Aberystwyth University were key downstream assets identified. Environment Systems was cited as the leading Welsh SME with strong links to academia (particularly Aberystwyth University) pioneering the delivery of downstream EO products and services generated from satellites and other terrestrial assets such as Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).
ACSEM is a direct response to the Strategy’s aim to promote clusters of space activity around existing areas of academic and industry expertise to deliver for Wales. ACSEM will foster an openly innovative way of working to align with key industrial needs, practising smart specialisation and engagement with businesses throughout the supply chain and offering training, support, knowledge exchange and help with IP exploitation and start-up creation.
“ACSEM is a great example of Academia and Industry coming together in response to a wider government strategy,” said Steve Keyworth from Environment Systems. “It will extend our already close relationship with Aberystwyth University that we have built up over the last 12 years and open up new opportunities to build a world class centre for research in Space and Earth observation. ACSEM will promote further industry and government collaboration to generate downstream activity in the space sector supporting entrepreneurship and start-ups and creating jobs. ACSEM will also deliver new undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and training for the next generation of scientists and technologists.”
Watch the video on the launch of the Welsh Space Strategy and the launch of ACSEM.