Dubai: The India Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai today announced the agenda for the upcoming Space Week scheduled to happen from 17th October to 23rd October 2021. The week being organised by the Department of Space and FICCI will see participation from various dignitaries in the space sector including, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Department of Space and Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe).

India’s recent space missions and the success in the sector has positioned the nation as a leading space hub in the world. The country’s focus on space exploration is backed by its technological expertise and proficiency in high-end technologies. In the recent past, India has led various missions like putting 104 satellites into orbit in a single mission and succe ssfully completing complex missions like the Mangalyaan at fraction of the cost of similar missions led by other countries. . In line with these achievements, the Space Week at Expo 2020 Dubai will hold sessions on Future of Space International Participations & Collaborations, Space for start-ups: Infinite opportunities in space, Space 2030: Space for Sustainable Businesses and Building Capacity and Research Opportunities.

The sessions will be presided over by leading voices in the space sector in India, like Dr K. Sivan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) & Secretary Department of Space, Govt of India, Dr Pawan Goenka, Chairman, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe) and Dr Umamaheswaran R, Scientific Secretary, ISRO.

The session on Future of Space International Participations & Collaborations will explore discussions around space exploration, international collaborations for joint research & development that leads to multiple areas of research in one mission at the same cost. The panelists will explore opportunities to create affordable platform for carrying out research based on the interests of individual nation and cross functional knowledge sharing.

The session on Building Capacity and Research Opportunities will be key in addressing the questions pertaining to focus areas on research in the space sector, challenges in the space domain and building capacity in conjunction with Government and Private partners. Space is a multi-faceted discipline which can yield benefits to many areas such as agriculture, transport, urban development, land cover and use, weather, disaster management, water resources, communication and entertainment etc. It will discuss the advanced technologies like quantum mechanics, Synthetic aperture radars, multi-spectral solutions, green propellants, etc. provide huge potential for research in the space domain, and product development.

Sustainable Business opportunities in the space sector is another crucial area that will be addressed during the Space Week. The session will focus on current state of investment and sustainable business models in the space sector. This session aims to deliberate upon the subject of future commercial space ecosystem. The panel will describe about the operations of commercial space travel service, interplanetary connectivity of satellites, and competition among space refuelling services.

Moreover, the session on ‘Space for Start-ups’ will be pivotal in discussing the available market opportunities in the Space start-up sector and factors required to increase industry participation. With start-ups and private sector now contributing ever more significantly towards technological development, what was previously considered a strategic space for Governments have now slowly become accessible to industry at large. It will discuss the rise of private investments in space start-ups that has increased over tenfold over the past decade.

The Space Week at Expo 2020 Dubai will be a significant event for the India Pavilion. India has already shown its superiority in the space technologies. The world today is enamoured by Mangalyaan, India’s Mars mission and the upcoming mission, Gaganyan.