Massachusetts Space Week Kicks Off at UMass Lowell

Contacts for media: Emily Gowdey-Backus, director of media relations and Nancy Cicco, assistant director of media relations 

UMass Lowell kicked off Massachusetts Space Week Tuesday, April 16, with a program that united scientists, students and leaders across many industries who share a bold vision for the future of space research and exploration. 

Presented by the The Space Consortium, the week allows aerospace experts and enthusiasts to collaborate and learn about the latest discoveries and resources for new endeavors. Home to the Lowell Center for Space Science and Technology, UMass Lowell was selected to open the festivities given the university’s expertise in physics research and spacecraft design, along with its track record of successful missions, many on behalf of NASA. 

Now undergoing an expansion made possible through a $5.5 million seed grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, the center will soon include the Massachusetts Alliance for Space Technology and Sciences (MASTS) initiative, to be led by UMass Lowell physics Professor Supriya Chakrabarti. The enterprise will become a hub where scientists, industry leaders and startups can build and test miniature satellites and components essential to spaceflight. 

“UMass Lowell is proud to join The Space Consortium, the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, our students, private industry partners, and the Commonwealth’s nonprofit and cultural organizations to celebrate Space Week. The week’s programs complement our institution’s work with all stakeholders to pursue the possibilities that await us on the frontiers of space exploration and research,” said UMass Lowell Chancellor Julie Chen.

Echoing those themes, speakers at the event included state representatives Simon Cataldo, Rodney Elliott and Sean Garballey; Space Consortium and Massachusetts Space Week Founder and Director Alissa Haddaji; Massachusetts Technology Collaborative CEO Carolyn Kirk; and former NASA astronaut Jeff Hoffman, along with representatives from U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan’s office; Draper Laboratory; the Massachusetts Cultural Council; Museum of Science, Boston; Meet Boston, and others. 

“Massachusetts Space Week is an opportunity for our state to show off the leading research centers, startups and students that are driving innovation in space exploration to support human space travel, unmanned missions and satellite networks,” said Kirk. “This grassroots collaboration aims to make space science accessible to all and bridge the gap between academia and the broader community. Thanks to UMass Lowell for their partnership and innovation in this arena.”

Over the past decade, UMass Lowell has launched multiple NASA-funded missions to develop technologies for imaging planets beyond the solar system and a miniature satellite designed and built by UMass Lowell students released into orbit by astronauts at the International Space Station. 

MASTS will offer students from UMass Lowell and other Bay State higher-ed institutions new opportunities to gain firsthand experience while participating in aerospace projects, complementing the university’s recently expanded physics and engineering programs. These include an aerospace studies minor for undergraduates and an aerospace sciences option for doctoral candidates in physics. 

“As Massachusetts Space Week extends its reach statewide for the first time, amplifying space science outreach efforts across the Commonwealth, we are thrilled to co-host the celebration’s kick-off event with MASTS at UMass Lowell, a pivotal hub for space research,” Haddaji said.

UMass Lowell students are integral to space research conducted at the university. In fact, many of them gathered data during the recent solar eclipse for a new study that will examine the Earth’s transition from day to night and back again. For Tuesday’s program, several UMass Lowell students participated in a panel discussion on space exploration and shared individual research projects. They included Massachusetts residents Aadith Arasu of Andover; Mitchell Bailey of Dracut; Sayantan Bhattacharya of Lowell; Joshua Barosin of Newbury; Lucas Hanson of Carver; Christian O’Connell of Saugus; Margaret Seng of Medford; and Nicholas Sorabella of Melrose, along with Akshay Soni of Brookfield, Connecticut; Charmi Patel of Champaign, Illinois; and Joshua Fitzpatrick of Londonderry, and Julie Sage of Nashua, New Hampshire.