Samuli Nyman is holding a small box in his hands that looks as though pieces of metal tape are sticking out of it. This is a do-it-yourself teaching satellite that even a child can compile and programme.
‘The mission of this satellite is in classrooms, not in space. It allows future engineers and all other people interested in space and science to see how easily approachable and understandable satellites are today. You don’t have to be a supergenius to become a space engineer, but space technology is suited for everyone’, says Samuli Nyman, one of the founders of Kitsat.
In addition to lights which indicate charging, Kitsat has a camera, a GPS, Bluetooth connectivity, a radio, an air pressure gauge and an acceleration meter. In Finland, the Kitsat satellite has found its way to lectures at upper secondary schools and science centres such as Heureka. The operations have also gained international interest.
‘We have taken it to secondary schools in South Africa and China, which is our largest market. We also have leads in the Middle East, India, Thailand, Russia, Central America and Middle America. Our volumes are growing strongly, and the demand is even higher than what we can meet at the moment’, Nyman says.
Kitsat’s mission is clear to Nyman: to increase awareness and interest in satellites.
‘Every Finn should know about satellites, as they affect all of us. The entire society relies on the information transmitted by satellites’, says Nyman.
Read more about Kitsat:
https://www.aalto.fi/en/news/educational-satellite-won-a-spot-in-the-international-space-station