Nine-Week Course Designed For Post-Graduate Students

The International Space University (ISU) 26th annual Space Studies Program (SSP) will be held at the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE) campus in São José dos Campos, Brazil in 2013. It will be the third time the program is held in the southern hemisphere

Each summer, ISU offers this intense nine-week course designed for post-graduate university students and professionals of all experience levels and disciplines. The site of the SSP changes annually, making it a unique educational concept and building on the fundamental ISU tenant of an international experience.

"We expect this to be a great SSP," said ISU President Michael Simpson. "The facilities are superb, the level of technical expertise is very high, and the vision of the space sector's capacity to improve not only human knowledge but the human condition as well is evident everywhere."

ISU provides an interdisciplinary education in the context of an intercultural and international environment to support the development of future leaders in the world space community. The SSP offers its participants a unique and comprehensive education covering all aspects of space programs and enterprises including space physical sciences, space systems engineering, policy and law, business and management, space and society, satellite applications, and space life sciences and human spaceflight. The SSP core lecture series serves as the foundation on which the more in-depth activities undertaken in the seven departments are built. The team projects provide the participants with an international and intercultural team working experience wherein they must not only refine the topic as a team, but also produce professional quality reports and final presentations, all in the span of a few weeks.

"We have already started to organize a local committee for the SSP13 in Brazil," said Dr. Antonio Yukio Ueta, responsible for the local committee of SSP13. "Basically, this committee will be attended by specialists from INPE and partners who are ISU Alumni. It will also include the participation of the experienced team from INPE in organizing events of international level. It is important to emphasize that we are quite motivated and committed to welcome the ISU family and run a successful SSP in Sao Jose dos Campos."

One of INPE's strategic goals is to become a National and international reference in both space and earth environment fostering knowledge and attending and anticipating demands on Brazilian society life quality progress.

"We are delighted to hear the news of our selection! INPE and the city of São José dos Campos will do their best to fulfill ISU's expectations. Definitely, it will be an important opportunity for the Brazilian Space Program to bring together our community of Institutions related to space, allowing for more interaction, global cooperation and to motivate our people to be always attentive to the technology frontiers for our industry" said Dr. Gilberto Câmara, Director General of INPE.

FMI: www.isunet.edu