Space projects at Maker Faire Rome 2022

Projects and initiatives to bring the general public closer to the aerospace sector

Space themed projects at MFR 2022

Humans have always looked to space with curiosity and admiration, looking for answers to questions about what is happening around our planet, and there are many reasons for this interest. Over the years, the space has been the ground of many scientific and technological discoveries and seat of an increasingly strong international competition, that lately has also become a business area.  Today we are thus faced with a new “space race”, characterized by an epochal change: the participation of the private sector.

From the first missions in the 1960s until early 2000, all space activities were conducted exclusively by the governments of the world’s major powers and their respective space agencies. In recent years, however, we saw the entry into play of large private companies eager to compete in this race to discover space.

In this regard, we cannot fail to mention Space X, the American company founded by Elon Musk, that entered the history with Falcon X for being the first private company who sent into orbit the first large space rocket.

In any case, the aerospace is a powerful engine for technological development and many of the innovations we use daily could not exist without the space exploration. To name a few of the most well-known: weather forecasts, satellite television or GPS geolocation.

Thanks also to the private sector, the world of space exploration is becoming more and more accessible and at Maker Faire Rome 2022 many protagonists contributed with their projects and initiatives to bring the general public closer to the aerospace sector.

Space Exploration: Technology and Applications

What is the future of space exploration? What are the boundaries and limits to overcome?

During the tenth edition of Maker Faire Rome, the European Space Agency (ESA) tried to answer these questions, by presenting to the public three different projects.

 “Solar System Exploration”: from the tests on Earth to the training of the astronauts and to the design of the technology of yesterday and tomorrow, a project to discover some of the missions that allow us to design a human future in space.

 “Moon and 3D Print”: a project that shows the potential of 3D printer technologies for the development of future space missions, from the Moon Village to the construction of satellite parts.

 “Eo Touch Table”: a tactile table that allows to visualize, in an intuitive and innovative way, the images obtained from satellite data, for a total involvement of the viewer.

ABACHOS: Automatic Back Home System

Abachos is an educational program that includes a set of project activities aimed at sending the balloons into the Stratosphere.

The first experiments were carried out in 2014 under the patronage of the Ministry of Education. Today Abachos boasts numerous research and business partners, such as INGV – National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, the Group of Experimental Cosmology of Sapienza University, the University of Caserta and “Arma Aeronautica” Association – Caserta section, to name just a few.

There were many launches, lectures and activities carried out within the project, all united by the same purpose: developing and promoting scientific and technological knowledge.

Abachos is an educational program born thanks to the collaboration of many teachers and technicians. Started at the IIS “Vittorio Emanuele II” of Naples, it currently has its main development center at the IIS Palmieri Rampone of Benevento.

Planets, what a show!

How much would you weigh on Jupiter? How big are Saturn’s rings? Fly over Jupiter’s great red spot and glimpse the cloud curls of its atmosphere. Discover the jagged surface of Mars and land on Mercury and experience its weak gravity: with the projet “Planets, what a show!” you could discover this and many other curiosities by exploring the Solar System.  

The project was carried out by Ilaria De Angelis, an astrophysicist who currently organizes scientific events for the public, training courses for teachers and activities and workshops for students; Adriana Postiglione and Massimiliano Di Blasi, that collaborate both with the Orientation and Communication Group of Physics and Mathematics of Roma Tre University, always looking for new ways to talk about science to the general public and students in particular.

Lynx: the rocket-probe of the Polythecnic of Milan 2

Lynx is the first competition rocket of Skyward Experimental Rocketry, an association of the Polythecnic of Milan, born with the aim to concretely apply the theory learned in the classroom.

Skyward Experimental Rocketry includes more than 150 students from different engineering faculties, aimed at designing experimental spacecraft rockets. The final mission of the association is to be up to the word “experimental” and to build a reality where students and enthusiasts of any age can be free to express their creativity and their potential.

Lynx competed at EuRoC 2021, a Rocketry competition organized by the Portuguese space agency, winning two awards and ranking second in Europe.

Maker Faire Rome 2022 was an opportunity to present the project to a wide audience and tell the story and the successes achieved by the Skyward Experimental Rocketry team.

SPACE-iit: robotics and innovative technologies for space exploration

Space is a dangerous and harsh environment: that is why human beings need new technologies that can help them to explore the “final border”. The project presented at Maker Faire Rome 2022 by SPACE-iit, the hub of the Italian Institute of Technology dedicated to Interdisciplinary and Innovative Space Technologies, moves in this direction.

Visitors could make an imaginary journey into the future, reaching a space station populated by robots able to manipulate objects, repair satellites and navigate on the surface of distant planets.

A project realized by Carlo Brindesi Canali, physicist and expert in robotics inspection in harsh environments; Ferdinando Cannella, coordinator of the Industrial Robotics Facility in IIT; Remo Proietti, founder and coordinator of SPACE-iit.

Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition has been committed since its very first edition to make innovation accessible, usable and profitable for all. This blog is always updated and full of opportunities and inspiration for makers, makers, SMEs and all the curious ones who wish to enrich their knowledge and expand their business, in Italy, in Europe and beyond.

Subscribe our newsletter: we will select and share the most valuable information for you