The Summer School Alpbach

Each year about 60 selected participants from among the member and cooperating states of the European Space Agency are given the opportunity to expand and strengthen their knowledge of selected space issues. The purpose of the Summer School is to foster the practical application of knowledge derived from lectures, to develop organisational and team-work skills and to encourage creativity.

Four student teams are set up to define the scientific objectives of a space mission and a preliminary end-to-end mission design including the spacecraft, scientific instruments, mission and science operations that will meet the stated objective under the supervision of noted scientific and engineering experts. Each student team conceives and elaborates an innovative satellite mission and present it to an expert review panel on the last day.

The teams themselves are responsible for the selection of the subject of the project and for the team structure and working methods. A key element of the summer school is the workshop, to which more than 50% of the time spent in Alpbach are being given.

The Summer School is organised by the Aeronautics and Space Agency of FFG and co-sponsored by the European Space Agency and the national space authorities of its member and cooperating states. A traditional partner is the International Space Science Institute (ISSI).