Month: December 2015

EASA, the European authority for aviation safety
Aviation, Operations

EASA, the European authority for aviation safety

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is the European Union authority for aviation safety. Its mission is to provide the EU citizens safe air travel in Europe and worldwide. Three Delft Aerospace alumni provide an inside on the Agency’s activities. What is EASA? EASA was established in 2002 as an Agency of the European Union (EU). The main activities of EASA include the certification of aviation products, development of common safety and environmental rules on European level, the oversight of approved organizations, the oversight of (standardization inspections) and support to Member States in fields where EASA has shared competence (e.g. Air Operations , Air Traffic Management) and safety management and analysis activities at European level. The Agency staff...
Advanced Propulsion Systems in Space
Space engineering, Space flight

Advanced Propulsion Systems in Space

In May 2015, the Planetary Society launched a CubeSat into orbit. Normally this is not very exciting, since CubeSats are launched on a regular basis. However, this satellite, called LightSail (see visual), uses a solar sail as its propulsion system. While this is only a flight to prove the concept, missions that are more ambitious are already being planned; all in order to make interplanetary travel more efficient.   Solar Sail One of new propulsion systems is very similar to something being used every day on Earth: a sail. Sailboats use the concept of wind hitting a large surface area to create a propulsive force, thereby moving the craft. Scientists are now testing that concept on spacecraft as well. Instead of using the normal wind present in the atmosphere, they use photo...