CLASSROOM APPLICATIONS OF SATELLITES IN THE U.K.

摘要

Traditionally, the role of satellites within education has been seen as that of a common-carrier for the dissemination of educational materials -particularly into areas poorly served by conventional communications networks.Whilst satellites such as UoSAT-2 can play this role admirably using its Digital Communication Experiment payload and Bulleitn Service, both the UoSAT spacecraft have gone further; providing the first dedicated school's experiments stimulating a growing interest in space technology, both in the U.K. and abroad, via direct and active participation by school groups. This has encouraged schools to become interested in other satellite systems including the meteorological and TV broadcast satellites.The UoSAT Programme offers schools, colleges and universities a unique opportunity to take a direct part in space research, with the minimum of cost and complexity. The data provided by the two UoSAT satellites are of such a quality and quantity that they are having a significant impact on science teaching in the UK - fitting in very well with the new criteria laid down for the GCSE examinations. Further, a postgraduate Masters Degree (MSc) Course in Satellite Communications Engineering has been established at Surrey to help prepare student engineers for the space industry. The reception of meteorological satellite imagary and direct access to TV broadcasts from Europe and elsewhere, are stimulating other areas of the curriculum.The provision of educational satellites, and the establishment of a support network based around the National Resource Centre for Satellites in Education - within the UoSAT Unit, has provided the UK with a valuable resource for the improvement of technical education nationally; whilst also stimulating young people to consider engineering (particularly space engineering) as a career.