Czech Space Week, the largest festival of Czech space activities, officially began on 4 November with the promise of a bountiful programme focused on a broad spectrum of interested parties – from established firms and startups to students and space enthusiasts. Organised by the Ministry of Transport, CzechInvest, Prague Planetarium and other members of the Czech Space team, the festival will run until 10 November. The event-packed week will present the latest successes of the Czech space sector and familiarise attendees with innovations that are shaping space technologies and the space industry.
The festival began with the Czech Copernicus and Remote Sensing User Forum, which offers attendees presentations by experts and discussions on challenges and opportunities in the area of Earth observation. The festival’s opening ceremony was attended by President of the Czech Republic Petr Pavel, who stated in regard to the importance of space activities: “Space research and the space industry are exactly the fields on which I am convinced the Czech Republic should focus significant attention. This is an area with high-quality technologies, high value added and tremendous potential not only for the Czech Republic, but also for international cooperation.”
The Czech space programme is already achieving results and there is something to build on
More than 150 companies and academic institutions are currently active in the domestic space sector. This number is continuously growing, which is in part due to Czechia’s increased contributions to the European Space Agency (ESA), which will reach CZK 1.7 billion in 2025. According to Minister of Transport Martin Kupka, participation in ESA is of crucial importance: “Membership in ESA has enabled Czechia to build on the extensive work of Czech scientists and to effectively transform space activities from a scientific field into a new economic sector. In order to use the potential of space activities, however, it is necessary to accelerate their development in Czechia. The key to this is to build a system of support that inspires and educates talented young people, especially in technical fields, for their future employment in science and industry. This is the goal being pursued by the long-term Czech Journey to Space national project.”
The Czech Journey to Space project is focused on raising awareness of Czech successes and the importance of space activities for the modernisation of our economy and development of our society. It is also focused on education in the area of space activities and opportunities for students, as well as for industry and the academic sector. It’s objectives also include the endeavour to send Czech astronaut Major Aleš Svoboda into space. Major Svoboda has already commenced training as a member of the ESA astronaut reserve. “The Copernicus programme, which has been in the purview of the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute within the Ministry of the Environment since the new year, is a crucial tool for Czechia in the fight against climate change and extreme weather events. Thanks to the top-quality data that we have available, we can respond more precisely to challenge such as droughts, floods and air pollution. This European Union programme enables us to more effectively use our natural resources and to be better prepared for the future,” says Minister of the Environment Petr Hladík.
Czech Space Week 2024: From science to inspiration for women in space
The Czech Space Week programme will subsequently offer the Space2Business industry days, which this year will welcome foreign experts and companies from Europe, South America, Israel and India. The event will also be graced by the attendance of important guests such as former astronaut Andrew Feustel, executive director of EUSPA Rodrigo da Costa, and Geraldine Naja, director of commercialisation, industry and competitiveness.
“Industry Space Days will not be only about connecting the regions, but also the possibility of cooperation between the space industry and other sectors. This will be the focus of the Space for Climate Tech, Space and Defence, and Space in Mobility panel discussions. In addition, the ESA Ambassador project will also be relaunched and will have responsibility for this agenda,” says Jan Michal, CEO of CzechInvest.
The programme includes a full range of events, including the annual job fair for students at the Next Stop: Space event, which will take place in Brno. A significant part of the programme will comprise the Space4Women panel discussion, which is intended to inspire young women to become involved in technical and scientific fields.
The festival will also feature a number of new events. The Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences will open its doors to the public and the ESA BIC Czech Republic incubator will present its activities for this year and existing and new startups at the ESA BIC Launchpad event. Another new development under the ESA BIC banner is the incubator’s association with the Technology Incubation project, thanks to which incubated startups can obtain greater financial support in the amount of four times the original EUR 50,000.
The main partners of this year’s edition of Czech Space Week are leading companies operating in the space industry, namely OHB Group, Honeywell, the Czech Space Alliance and the Israeli company IAI. Other partners are Advacam, Stratosyst, the Czech Aerospace Research Centre, TRL Space, VAST Space, the ALKP association, the Brno Space Cluster and the Czech Aerospace Cluster.
Media contact:
Agentura CzechInvest
David Hořínek
PR Manager and Spokesperson
+420 724 591 667
david.horinek@czechinvest.org
Ministerstvo dopravy
František Jemelka
Spokesperson
+420 606 068 729
frantisek.jemelka@md.gov.cz