Flying Winners and a French Sky Patrol

"The national and international finals of Act in Space were exciting, and the projects presented were of very high quality," said Elise Mondot, SpaceTech Program Manager at EuraTechnologies. She is reflecting upon the international hackathon finals which took place in Cannes, France, on the 13th and 14th of February.

"I find it very interesting that, like the two winners Tree for Life Kourou and Nexus Azerbaijan, many teams have chosen to present ideas related to sustainable development," Mondot continues.

However, let’s reel back and see what happened to the Team 5-in-1 as the adventure started in Hauts-de-France, Engineering School of Aerospace Sciences (ELISA) Saint-Quentin campus, on the 18th of November 2022.

Delighted and Proud

"They came within one vote of making it to the final," says Elise Mondot. She refers to the Team 5-in-1 and their project involving a potential solution to signal space debris alerts by using a satellite video system. The team also provided a market study concerning the challenge to accompany their project.

While maybe disappointed on behalf of the team, Mondot reveals that one of the team members plans to join the SpaceTech incubation program at EuraTechnologies to further develop the idea.

According to Mondot, all of the teams that took part in the Act In Space hackathon have a chance to be accompanied and guided in the establishment of their start-ups by the Connect by CNES service and the ESA BIC network.

"We are delighted and proud to have participated in this competition this year," Mondot concludes. Team 5-in-1’s alarm system may one day indeed patrol the skies.

Winners in ZERO-G

"I find it very interesting that, like the two winners Tree for Life Kourou and Nexus Azerbaijan, many teams have chosen to present ideas related to sustainable development," Mondot says.

According to the official ActInSpace press releases, CNES rewarded Nexus Azerbaidjan for their project of modifying flight paths to cut down pollution and fuel use with the ActInSpace International Grand Price: a flight aboard the A310 ZERO-G aeroplane - that means zero gravity.

Tree for Life Kourou was awarded for their project focusing to reduce soil erosion. The ActInSpace Grand Prize includes an opportunity to see a space launch at the Guyane Space Center.

The initiative Tree for Life Kourou, which aims to stop soil erosion, won the ActInSpace France Grand Prize, which included the opportunity to see a space launch at the Guyane Space Center.

410

According to the official ActInSpace press releases, the hackathon brought to life 410 potential startups.

All participants in the national and international finals, students and professionals, had a chance to participate in a B2B side event to network with the ActinSpace sponsor companies such as Thales and Airbus.

Besides the two winning teams, Nexus Azerbaijan and Tree for Life Kourou, all participants will have an opportunity to be supported in the creation of their start-ups. This is empowered by Connect via CNES and the partner incubators, ESA Bic and Teach The Moon.

Minea Laporcherie is freelancer journalist from Finland who is fascinated by space.