Proud to be part of LJMU,
in partnership with the Dill Faulkes Educational Trust

 

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Satellites

Space Ports

Spaceports are just like airports or shipping ports, but for spacecraft. 

They are places that will launch, and maybe even land rockets. 

Two CubeSats, small rectangular satellites, floating in space above the Earth's atmosphere with clouds visible in the background
This work by NASA is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal
Image of CubeSats - a common modern small and lightweight satellite.

Uses of Satellites

Satellites are useful in lots of ways. They look at the Earth as well as space. They also help us in our daily lives.

A hand holding a smartphone displaying a map with a red location pin, against a background of green grass and plants
This work by The Schools' Observatory is licensed under All rights reserved
Smartphone with maps app

Space Stations

Did you know there are always humans in space? 

Since 1971, men and women have been living for months at a time on space stations. These are spacecraft large enough for several astronauts to live there at once. 

The International Space Station (ISS) is shown in orbit above Earth, with its distinctive structure including multiple modules and large solar arrays extending from either side, reflecting sunlight against the dark backdrop of space
This work by NASA/Crew of STS-132 is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal
International Space Station, as photographed by Space Shuttle Atlantis

Firsts in Space

The journey to space didn’t start with humans. Before astronauts, animals were sent to test if living things could survive the trip. From fruit flies to dogs, these animals played a key role in space exploration. Some, like Laika the dog, became famous for their bravery. 

An image showing an astronaut floating in space above Earth with the text 'Space Exploration' in blue and purple font at the top. The background is a black sky with the curvature of the Earth visible at the bottom
This work by NASA is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal

Claudia Alexander

Early Life

Claudia was born in Vancouver, Canada and grew up in California, USA. She wanted to be a historian, but her parents wanted her to be an engineer. Claudia discovered her love of planetary science during an internship at NASA’s Ames Research Centre. She was meant to be concentrating on engineering but kept sneaking off to the science section. Claudia studied for a degree in geophysics and a master’s in geophysics and space physics. She was awarded a PhD in space physics from the University of Michigan.

Year born: 1959

Research Areas: Jupiter’s Moons, Comets

 

"I feel like a modern-day explorer; the last frontier is space"