UCL joins Space South Central

The UK space industry is worth around £17.5 billion a year to the UK economy. It employs 48,800 people and has ambitions to become a global leader by 2030.

An important part of that ambition is building strong partnerships through regional space clusters, with Space South Central the largest of its kind. The cluster brings together the Universities of Portsmouth, Southampton, Surrey and now UCL, alongside industrial partners and civic leaders.

Dr Louise Butt, Director of the Space South Central Enterprise Network, said: “UCL has a reputation for ground-breaking research and innovation, making it a global star among universities worldwide.

“Its heritage in space-based research extends beyond the cutting-edge expertise developed at Mullard Space Science Laboratory over many decades. With a vast portfolio spanning planetary science, space policy, climate physics, astrochemistry, quantum science and much more, UCL brings a wealth of complementary expertise to our cluster.

“We're delighted that UCL has chosen to partner with Space South Central to support, enhance and benefit from our cluster initiatives.”

Professor Geraint Rees, UCL Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement), added: 

“I’m delighted that UCL is joining the largest regional space cluster in the UK. Collaboration with both industry and academic peers has been a defining feature of UCL’s space activity for over 60 years, stretching back to the multinational Ariel 1 satellite, Britain’s first step into space. It’s fitting to see this legacy of successful industry academic partnership continue with Space South Central and I look forward to seeing the synergies that arise.”

Focusing on investment and space skills 

The new partnership will bring benefits to UCL, the cluster, and the space sector as a whole. 

Professor Andrew Fazakerley is Professor of Space Plasma Physics, Head of the UCL Department of Space and Climate Physics and member of the UCL Space Domain Steering Committee.

He comments: “Joining Space South Central will bring significant and tangible benefits to our growing community of researchers involved in space research. It will mean greater opportunities for collaboration with both academic peers and industry partners, helping us to ensure that innovative ideas and research breakthroughs achieve their full potential.”

UCL’s location will further strengthen ties between London’s business and academic networks and key space industry sector partners in the south of England. Additionally, UCL’s international profile will help cluster members grow their profile overseas and build on the £1.64 billion of export revenue and £65 million in foreign investment they already receive annually.

Becoming a world-class space nation

In 2021 the UK government unveiled ambitious plans to strengthen the UK as a world-class space nation in the National Space Strategy. This strategy set out a ten-point plan that prioritised the importance of regional space clusters.

Space South Central has grown to become the largest of these clusters. Over 170 companies and organisations are involved in the cluster, collectively generating annually around £3 billion in space income and employing 14,000 people in total.

In a 2023 brochure by Space South Central, titled UK Space: In One Place, Dr Paul Bate, CEO of the UK Space Agency, commented: “Space South Central exemplifies the vision set out in the National Space Strategy of a sector working together across the country to showcase UK skills and capabilities, catalyse investment, and enhance our international reputation as a hub of expertise and innovation.”

UCL’s diverse and growing space community

The Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL), part of UCL’s Department of Space and Climate Physics, is the UK's largest university space research group.

The group covers all aspects of space research, from observing the Sun and its interaction with the planets, to understanding galaxies and the matter that makes up the universe. Its scientists and engineers build and operate cutting edge space hardware for multinational space missions and have provided equipment for scientific satellites involved in 71 orbital launches to date, most recently the Euclid mission.

The UCL Space Domain is a growing community that unites researchers from different disciplines with an interest in various aspects of space-based research and innovation.

This community includes researchers from life sciences, social sciences and humanities, as well as engineering and technical disciplines. This interdisciplinary approach highlights the multifaceted nature of space research at UCL, aiming to address both the technological challenges of space exploration and its broader societal impacts.

Space research at UCL includes a wide range of topics, including:

• science diplomacy
• health impacts of space travel on humans
• social and cultural history of space science
• preservation of space artifacts, in collaboration with museums
• astrobiology
• implications of space exploration for reproductive health
• integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning with astronomy
• space science instrumentation and satellite communications
• earth observation and robotics

UCL’s strategic partnership with Space South Central was facilitated by the Business and Innovation Partnerships team at UCL Innovation & Enterprise.

Links

Find out more about:

• Space South Central
• UCL Space and Climate Physics
• Support for external organisations to engage with UCL
• Support for UCL staff to engage with external organisations

Photo taken at UCL Festival of Engineering shows the Mars Lander - worked on by UCL scientists - being shown to the next generation of space engineers. © Lucy Pope