Odysseus1The National Space Academy would like to invite schools from around the UK to take part in the Odysseus II European Youth Space Contest. 

 The six month competition is now open for submissions, to young people aged between 7 and 22. 

The contest is split into age categories: 7-11, 14-18 and 17-22.

Submissions close on 15 January 2016.

The main activity of the project is a fun-oriented educational contest (The Youth for Space Challenge) that combines scientific learning with hands-on experience. Organized in multiple rounds, the contest targets all pupils and students in Europe, wherever they are living and irrespective of their cultural background or language.

Previous winners include Bay House School, Gosport; who's INTERcore project was to design a mission to land on the Comet Ison, to identify radioactive isotopes and organic molecules, to answer the fundamental question of whether or not comets brought life/water to Earth. This 2013 project was completed a full two years before the European Space Agency mission Rosetta arrived at the comet 67P.    

The winning project at the International final will receive a paid trip to the Guiana Space Centre: launch site of the European Space Agency. 

Odysseus