Anu Ojha

Last updated
Anu Ojha
Born
Anupam Ojha
Awards Sir Arthur Clarke Award
Scientific career
Institutions Great Barr School
National Space Centre
European Space Agency
STFC
UK Space Agency

Anupam Ojha OBE (born 1968) is a British space exploration administrator employed at the UK Space Agency. He is a Director of the National Space Centre, serves on the Science and Technology Facilities Council, as a member of the European Space Agency Human Spaceflight and Exploration Science Advisory Committee (HESAC). [1]

Contents

Career

Ojha taught physics, mathematics and sciences at a range of UK all-ability secondary schools culminating in becoming Assistant Headteacher at Great Barr School. [2] In 2003 he was awarded Advanced Skills Teacher status by the Secretary of State for Education. [3] He was made a National Lead Practitioner for physics by the UK Specialist Schools and Academies Trust in 2010, and continues to teach physics at Loughborough College. [4]

Ojha started working on teacher training programmes for BNSC (the forerunner organisation to the UK Space Agency) and European Space Agency in 2007. In this capacity he leads teacher and student (school and undergraduate level) training programmes. [4] His work helped demonstrate that space related education has a profound impact on student achievement, resulting in better than predicted grades at GCSE and A-level. [5] He has led the National Space Academy since it launched in 2008. [6] He was awarded the 2010 Sir Arthur Clarke Award for Inspiration. [7] Since 2016 he has been the lead for Skills/Education/Human spaceflight and robotic exploration in the UK Government's programmes of strategic collaboration in Space Science and Technology with China

In 2014 Ojha was appointed OBE for services to science education in the Queen's Birthday Honours. [8] He led the Astro Academy Principia Education Programme involving experiments conducted by European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake during his time on the International Space Station. He served as a consultant for the ESA SOHO orbiting solar observatory. [9]

In 2016 Ojha was appointed as an Honorary Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Leicester. He is co-investigator for the planetary sampling tool SPLIT, which is being developed for future Mars exploration missions. He has served as the President of the Astronautics Records Commission of the Federation Aeronautique Internationale. [10] [11] [12]

Ojha was appointed to the STFC Council in 2018, and the Global Space Congress Advisory Board of the UAE Space Agency. He has a long-standing interest in why people believe conspiracy theories and misinformation and the societal ramifications of this. [13]

Personal life

Ojha is a skydiver who has completed nearly 1,500 jumps. [2] He acted as an independent analyst for the Red Bull Stratos stratospheric jump of Felix Baumgartner and has made many technical and general presentations on stratospheric skydiving and human survival in extreme environments including as a keynote presentation at the 2019 Skydive Expo of the British Parachute Association. He is supporting the neutral buoyancy facility the Blue Abyss project. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Space Agency</span> European organization dedicated to space exploration

The European Space Agency (ESA) is a 22-member intergovernmental body devoted to space exploration. With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,200 people globally as of 2018, ESA was founded in 1975. Its 2023 annual budget was €7.08 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Space Centre</span> Space (and aerospace) museum in Belgrave, Leicester

The National Space Centre is a museum and educational resource covering the fields of space science and astronomy, along with a space research programme in partnership with the University of Leicester. It is located on the north side of the city in Belgrave, Leicester, England, next to the River Soar. Many of the exhibits, including upright rockets, are housed in a tower with minimal steel supports and a semi-transparent cladding of ETFE 'pillows' which has become one of Leicester's most recognisable landmarks. The National Space Centre is a registered charity with a board of trustees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British National Space Centre</span> Former agency of the government of the United Kingdom

The British National Space Centre (BNSC) was an agency of the Government of the United Kingdom, organised in 1985, that coordinated civil space activities for the United Kingdom. It was replaced on 1 April 2010 by the UK Space Agency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swedish Institute of Space Physics</span> Swedish government agency

The Swedish Institute of Space Physics is a Swedish government agency. The institute's primary task is to carry out basic research, education and associated observatory activities in space physics, space technology and atmospheric physics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aurora programme</span> ESA human spaceflight programme from 2001

The Aurora programme was a human spaceflight programme of the European Space Agency (ESA) established in 2001. The objective was to formulate and then to implement a European long-term plan for exploration of the Solar System using robotic spacecraft and human spaceflight to investigate bodies holding promise for traces of life beyond the Earth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Space Astronomy Centre</span> ESA center specialized in space astronomy

The European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) near Madrid in Spain is the ESA's centre for space science. It hosts the science operation centres for all ESA astronomy and planetary missions together with their scientific archives. Past and present missions represented at ESAC include Akari, BepiColombo, Cassini–Huygens, Cluster, Exomars, Gaia, Herschel Space Observatory, Hubble Space Telescope, ISO, INTEGRAL, IUE, James Webb Space Telescope, LISA Pathfinder, Mars Express, Planck, Rosetta, SOHO, Solar Orbiter, Venus Express, and XMM-Newton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romanian Space Agency</span> Space agency; public institution with extrabudgetary funding

The Romanian Space Agency is a public institution with extra-budgetary funding that coordinates Romania's national space technology research programs and space research-related activities. ROSA was founded in 1991 and is subordinate to the Ministry of Education.

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) is a United Kingdom government agency that carries out research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including particle physics, nuclear physics, space science and astronomy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlas Computer Laboratory</span>

The Atlas Computer Laboratory on the Harwell, Oxfordshire campus shared by the Harwell Laboratory was one of the major computer laboratories in the world, which operated between 1961 and 1975 to provide a service to British scientists at a time when powerful computers were not usually available. The main user population was the UK universities and some government agencies.

Charles Cockell is a British astrobiologist who is professor of astrobiology in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Edinburgh and co-director of the UK Centre for Astrobiology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swiss Space Office</span>

The Swiss Space Office (SSO) is the federal government's competence centre for national and international space matters. In its role it cooperates closely with other federal offices and is responsible for the preparation and implementation of the policy and strategic orientations of the space domain in Switzerland. The SSO is part of the State Secretariat for Education, Research, and Innovation. The Head of the SSO is Dr. Renato Krpoun.

The United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA) is an executive agency of the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the United Kingdom's civil space programme. It was established on 1 April 2010 to replace the British National Space Centre (BNSC) and took over responsibility for government policy and key budgets for space exploration; it represents the United Kingdom in all negotiations on space matters. The Agency "[brings] together all UK civil space activities under one single management". It is based at the former BNSC headquarters in Swindon, Wiltshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vladimir Pletser</span>

Vladimir Pletser is Director of Space Training Operations at Blue Abyss since 2018, where he is in charge of developing astronaut training programs. From 2016 to early 2018, he was a Visiting Professor and Scientific Adviser at the Technology and Engineering Centre for Space Utilization (CSU) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China. He supported the preparation of scientific experiments in microgravity for the Chinese Tiangong space station and for aircraft parabolic flights. He worked previously from 1985 till early 2016 as a senior Physicist Engineer at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) of ESA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joint European Master in Space Science and Technology</span>

The Joint European Master in Space Science and Technology is an Erasmus Mundus 120 ECTS master programme. The SpaceMaster programme started in 2005 and it is focused on providing education in Space Science and Technology to its students.

Roderick William (Rod) Boswell AM FAA FTSE is an Australian physicist. He is a professor at the Australian National University in Canberra, in the Space Plasma, Power and Propulsion group of the Plasma Research Laboratory. He invented a technology which become the basis for the development of a new type of rocket thruster, the Helicon Double Layer Thruster: the ongoing development of the Australian Plasma Thruster is supported by the European Space Agency.

Richard Holdaway, CBE, FREng is a Professor of Spacecraft Engineering, Chairman of three hi-tech companies, and ex-Head of RAL Space, at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giovanna Tinetti</span> Italian astrophysicist

Giovanna Tinetti is an Italian physicist based in London. She is a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at University College London, who researches galactic planetary science, exoplanets and atmospheric science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josef Aschbacher</span> Austrian space administrator

Josef Aschbacher is Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), a position he has held since 1 March 2021. His international career in space combines more than 35 years' of experience at ESA, the European Commission, the Austrian Space Agency, the Asian Institute of Technology and the University of Innsbruck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Space Agency Science Programme</span> Science programme by the European Space Agency, focused on astronomy, astrophysics, and exploration

The Science Programme of the European Space Agency is a long-term programme of space science and space exploration missions. Managed by the agency's Directorate of Science, The programme funds the development, launch, and operation of missions led by European space agencies and institutions through generational campaigns. Horizon 2000, the programme's first campaign, facilitated the development of eight missions between 1985 and 1995 including four "cornerstone missions" – SOHO and Cluster II, XMM-Newton, Rosetta, and Herschel. Horizon 2000 Plus, the programme's second campaign, facilitated the development of Gaia, LISA Pathfinder, and BepiColombo between 1995 and 2005. The programme's current campaign since 2005, Cosmic Vision, has so far funded the development of ten missions including three flagship missions, JUICE, Athena, and LISA. The programme's upcoming fourth campaign, Voyage 2050, is currently being drafted. Collaboration with agencies and institutions outside of Europe occasionally occur in the Science Programme, including a collaboration with NASA on Cassini–Huygens and the CNSA on SMILE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rexus/Bexus</span>

The REXUS/BEXUS programme is a cooperation between the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Swedish National Space Agency (SNSA) that allows students from higher education institutions to study experiments on board sounding rockets and stratospheric balloons. Through a collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), the opportunity has been made available for students across all ESA Member States, Slovenia and Canada. The Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and the Mobile rocket base (MORABA) of DLR are responsible for the launch. Students are getting support from experts of DLR, ESA, SSC and ZARM. The programme started in 2007.

References

  1. ↑ "Professor Anu Ojha OBE". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
  2. 1 2 Ojha, Anu (2018-10-01). "Q&A Anu OjhaProfile". Astronomy & Geophysics. 59 (5): 5.43. doi:10.1093/astrogeo/aty236. ISSN   1366-8781.
  3. ↑ lh198. "Speaker Biographies — University of Leicester". www2.le.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. 1 2 "Professor Anu Ojha OBE - Science and Technology Facilities Council". stfc.ukri.org. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  5. ↑ Committee, Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology (2007-07-17). 2007: a space policy, seventh report of session 2006-07, Vol. 2: Oral and written evidence. The Stationery Office. ISBN   9780215035097.
  6. ↑ "National Space Academy - Professor Anu Ojha OBE". nationalspaceacademy.org. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  7. ↑ "In the news - Anu Ojha". Tes. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  8. ↑ Guardian Staff (2014-06-13). "Queen's birthday honours list 2014: OBE". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  9. ↑ esa. "Space science gives European teachers a boost". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  10. ↑ "National Space Academy - Professor Anu Ojha OBE". www.nsccdev.co.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  11. ↑ "Anu Ojha,Director of Education and Space Communications - News - Space Studio West London". spacestudiowestlondon.org. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  12. ↑ "Vice-Presidents". www.fai.org. 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  13. ↑ "Anu Ojha". New Scientist Live 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
  14. ↑ "Blue Abyss | Anu Ojha Education Consultant | Blue Abyss". blueabyss.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-28.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.