This is a project- based course in which students run a regular high-altitude balloon program going through an entire cycle of a space mission. They start by analyzing previous stratospheric balloon missions developed by students. Then in small specialized teams they tackle the various aspects of a space mission: mechanical, thermal, electric architecture; attitude control and navigation (passive), power generation and management, on-board data handling, data telemetry, payload operation and data acquisition, as well as project management. After having chosen one or several science objectives, the students design, build and test (including vacuum and cryogenics) their payload to study the atmosphere or to test a new technology in space. By the end of the first semester, the balloon payload is then launched from Aire-sur-l'Adour in collaboration with the balloon division of CNES (and/or in Kiruna with SNSA).

The main goal of this course is to create an environment in which students can plan and perform a balloon project mission with a scientific payload and critically select and evaluate relevant scientific and technical information within the subject. After completing the course, the students will be able to define primary and secondary objectives for their mission by writing detailed specifications and an efficient working flow package. Students will be also able to analyze and propose future improvements and developments and identify further knowledge needs and take responsibility for self- knowledge progress. Students will also have experience of writing proposals to the French Space Agency (CNES), and/or Swedish Space Agency SNSA.

Skills:
Systems engineering, project management, solving conflicting constraints, writing space documentation and reports.

This introduction to Spatial Medicine is designed for non-specialists and will offer an introduction to the space environment. It will subsequently provide an insight on space physiology and medicine, considering the impact of space flights on health and the associated adaptations and modifications of the human body (metabolism, bone and muscles, sleep, cells and molecules...). It will also give an overview of the different types of risks for health existing in Space environments and on possible solutions to monitor and solve a health problem during space flights (use of medication, oral biology...). The different models for ground simulation of spaceflight effects will also be presented. Finally, it will help students to better understand the link between Space, Medicine technology and cognitive sciences. Thanks to an introduction to space applications for health on Earth, the students will be involved in practical cases on how to collect health data in spaceflights and simulation experiments.

The course level and contents will be adapted according to the existing programmes in which it will be integrated (most probably Bachelor last year/Master 1 level) but a scientific background is needed. The idea is to offer this introductory course to future engineers or entrepreneurs who will work on space applications linked to Health and Medicine and who will need a global overview combining basic knowledge of medicine and of the major issues/challenges regarding Health and Space.

Is life a consciousness of the universe or just a thermodynamically egoistic rebel?

Join the course, get inspired and speak up you own concept!

The main aim of the course is to broaden the horizons of cognition in terms of understanding life processes, concepts of the presence of life in the Universe and more broadly the scientific approach in general. Hard knowledge on the current and historical concepts on the evolution of life, origin of life, methodology of investigating early life processes as well as principles of metabolism, extreme microbial environments, new technology concepts of microbial applications in Space colonization will be presented.

This is a project-base course in which students put themselves in the position of ancient astronomers and try to develop their own mathematical models in order to predict the position of one of the five planets that can be observed with the naked eye.

The main goal of the course is for students to experiment the scientific method: confronting tough questions, making small but incremental progress and taking advantage of feedback.

The historical field will be the students' playground. The first courses will explain some of the ancients findings on mathematical astronomy such as the neo-babylonians’ zig-zag functions and Ptolemy’s geometrical models. Then students will choose one planet, one location, and one period of time and will produce their own models and confront them to the real motions of the planet using the Stellarium software.

The range of the historical discussion will go from the middle of the third millennium BP to Einstein’s breakthrough in the early twentieth century: the questions of the ancient astronomers may be seen as natural ones, their answers may be seen as cultural ones, but what is really at stake in this course is about the search for understanding what might not be understood and the long term process of mankind trying to figure it out.

It’s hard to imagine long-lasting manned space missions without personalized healthcare provided onboard, and it is hard to imagine modern space healthcare without engineering and technology. In this course students will get an overview of current trends and challenges in medical technology for space. The course focuses on the technologies which are currently in use and on technologies which might make long-term space-flights possible in the near future. All the aspects are presented both in a general and a specific manner through several practical scenarios.

This is a project- based course in which students run a regular high-altitude balloon program going through an entire cycle of a space mission. They start by analyzing previous stratospheric balloon missions developed by students. Then in small specialized teams they tackle the various aspects of a space mission: mechanical, thermal, electric architecture; attitude control and navigation (passive), power generation and management, on-board data handling, data telemetry, payload operation and data acquisition, as well as project management. After having chosen one or several science objectives, the students design, build and test (including vacuum and cryogenics) their payload to study the atmosphere or to test a new technology in space. By the end of the first semester, the balloon payload is then launched from Aire-sur-l'Adour in collaboration with the balloon division of CNES (and/or in Kiruna with SNSA).

The main goal of this course is to create an environment in which students can plan and perform a balloon project mission with a scientific payload and critically select and evaluate relevant scientific and technical information within the subject. After completing the course, the students will be able to define primary and secondary objectives for their mission by writing detailed specifications and an efficient working flow package. Students will be also able to analyze and propose future improvements and developments and identify further knowledge needs and take responsibility for self- knowledge progress. Students will also have experience of writing proposals to the French Space Agency (CNES), and/or Swedish Space Agency SNSA.

Skills:
Systems engineering, project management, solving conflicting constraints, writing space documentation and reports.

This introduction to Spatial Medicine is designed for non-specialists and will offer an introduction to the space environment. It will subsequently provide an insight on space physiology and medicine, considering the impact of space flights on health and the associated adaptations and modifications of the human body (metabolism, bone and muscles, sleep, cells and molecules...). It will also give an overview of the different types of risks for health existing in Space environments and on possible solutions to monitor and solve a health problem during space flights (use of medication, oral biology...). The different models for ground simulation of spaceflight effects will also be presented. Finally, it will help students to better understand the link between Space, Medicine technology and cognitive sciences. Thanks to an introduction to space applications for health on Earth, the students will be involved in practical cases on how to collect health data in spaceflights and simulation experiments.

The course level and contents will be adapted according to the existing programmes in which it will be integrated (most probably Bachelor last year/Master 1 level) but a scientific background is needed. The idea is to offer this introductory course to future engineers or entrepreneurs who will work on space applications linked to Health and Medicine and who will need a global overview combining basic knowledge of medicine and of the major issues/challenges regarding Health and Space.

Is life a consciousness of the universe or just a thermodynamically egoistic rebel?

Join the course, get inspired and speak up you own concept!

The main aim of the course is to broaden the horizons of cognition in terms of understanding life processes, concepts of the presence of life in the Universe and more broadly the scientific approach in general. Hard knowledge on the current and historical concepts on the evolution of life, origin of life, methodology of investigating early life processes as well as principles of metabolism, extreme microbial environments, new technology concepts of microbial applications in Space colonization will be presented.

This is a project-base course in which students put themselves in the position of ancient astronomers and try to develop their own mathematical models in order to predict the position of one of the five planets that can be observed with the naked eye.

The main goal of the course is for students to experiment the scientific method: confronting tough questions, making small but incremental progress and taking advantage of feedback.

The historical field will be the students' playground. The first courses will explain some of the ancients findings on mathematical astronomy such as the neo-babylonians’ zig-zag functions and Ptolemy’s geometrical models. Then students will choose one planet, one location, and one period of time and will produce their own models and confront them to the real motions of the planet using the Stellarium software.

The range of the historical discussion will go from the middle of the third millennium BP to Einstein’s breakthrough in the early twentieth century: the questions of the ancient astronomers may be seen as natural ones, their answers may be seen as cultural ones, but what is really at stake in this course is about the search for understanding what might not be understood and the long term process of mankind trying to figure it out.

It’s hard to imagine long-lasting manned space missions without personalized healthcare provided onboard, and it is hard to imagine modern space healthcare without engineering and technology. In this course students will get an overview of current trends and challenges in medical technology for space. The course focuses on the technologies which are currently in use and on technologies which might make long-term space-flights possible in the near future. All the aspects are presented both in a general and a specific manner through several practical scenarios.