Registration for 2024/25 UKSEDS Competitions has now closed. For any last minute queries please contact the relevant competition team.
Competitions in numbers
Wondering why you should enter?
Here are six reasons why you should enter a UKSEDS competition
Skill Development
Learn to design and build your own space themed project whilst learning career boosting skills!
Team Working Skills
Participate in teams of up to 15. Learn how to manage a project, deadlines and a budget.
Technical Documentation
Our deliverables mirror milestones and reports that are used in industry.
Competition Day
All of our competitions conclude with a competition day with fellow participants and sponsors!
Career exploration
Explore career paths in the industry and gain insights into what it takes to succeed.
SPACE!!! 🛰🚀🌌
At the end of the day, do you really need any convincing to build space themed projects for fun?
UKSEDS
Competitions
Entry level
National Rocketry Championship
The National Rocketry Championship (NRC) is UKSEDS’ oldest and biggest competition. Teams are challenged with designing, building and launching a mid-power rocket with the primary goal of reaching an apogee of 2500ft. Teams must also have a payload.
The Olympus Rover Trials (ORT) challenge student teams to design, construct and operate a rover for an analogue sample return mission to Mars. Students create a rover concept, trade off performance parameters and pass through a rigorous review process with a panel of engineers from the space sector.
Entry level and advanced
Olympus Rover
Trials
Entry level
In-Orbit Servicing and Manufacturing
Students will be tasked to design and pitch a mission based in this emerging and exciting new field in the space industry. This gives them exposure to a broad range of topics, including space-based solar power, pharmaceuticals, active debris removal, and microgravity manufacturing.
The Satellite Design Competition (SDC) tasks students and young professionals to design and build a CubeSat prototype based on a particular challenge and theme within the space industry. Previous years have explored the use of CubeSats to tackle to the growing problem of space debris, and explored using CubeSats to perform science experimentation around the Moon.
Entry level
Satellite Design Competition
Advanced
Mach24
Mach-24 Launch Competition encompasses the high-level vision for an advanced high-powered rocketry competition within the UK, targeted primarily at University teams with some previous rocketry experience.The end goal is to enable students to design, build and operate large rockets (impulse equivalent to a level 1 & level 2 certification) and technical payloads in a competitive environment.
Competitions Academy
Frequently Asked Questions
UKSEDS competitions are open to all UKSEDS members. If you are not already a member, sign up for free membership today. This includes students (Bachelors to PhD), and we also support graduate teams (as long as team members have graduated within the last 3 years). Team size limits vary from 10-15 depending on the competition but there are no lower team limits.
Thanks to the generous sponsorship of Orbex, we’re also able to offer a grant for participating teams with at least half of their team members identifying as female or non-binary to also provide 50% of the costs for their project up to £250.
General Competitions Queries:
National Rocketry Championship:
Olympus Rover Trials:
Satellite Design Competition:
In Orbit Servicing and Manufacturing:
Mach:
Competitions Gallery
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