Kim | Da Vinci Satellite

Kim is a second-year Space Engineering Master student, who has spent the last four years as Chief Payload Engineer at Da Vinci Satellite next to her studies. 

Which student team are you a part of? 
“I am a part of the Da Vinci Satellite team, and I have been for quite a while now. I joined the team in the very first year that we started, so that is four years ago. The Da Vinci Satellite team consists of around 70 people now, who all work on different aspects of our project. In short, our project is to enthuse the youth (or anyone really) about space and technology. We do that by designing, building, and testing our satellite and educational programmes, and hopefully soon also launching it!  

Within the team, I work on the payload of the satellite, so that is really its hardware. We have been doing that with a small team, and it has been a lot of fun. I hold the position of Chief Payload Engineer, and as I’ve been a part of the team since the beginning, I have gone through the design, building, and testing, to now finishing the last little things for the payload.” 

So, what exactly does Da Vinci Satellite do? 
“Well, the goal of the entire team is to get people inspired about space and show them that space is something that everybody can get into. We do that by creating a playful interaction with our satellite, which will actually be launched into an orbit around the Earth! This is done in two ways, through both primary and secondary school projects. So, the primary school project is really focused on the payload of our satellite, which is, simply put, five dice floating in a cylinder in space. With a special arm that can move around, these dice are thrown around. Visualisation of this is then sent to Earth and used in games and exercises in class!  

Similarly, the high school project makes use of the satellite to understand more about the effects of communicating through space. This project is more technical and concerns bit flips, or error corrections, that occur when storing information in electronics. So, the goal is really to create fun, interacting projects for people to get interested in space, while of course making our own satellite that facilitates that!” 

Why did you go for this team?  
“That’s a good question. One of the reasons I decided to study at TU Delft is actually because of the student teams. When I was in high school, I already really liked working on robotics or other teams after school hours. So, I already knew I wanted to join a student team at the university. And thus, in the second year of my bachelor’s, I decided to join Forze, a hydrogen-electric race car team, as part-time Marketing and Operations Officer. I worked so close with an engineering team, but my job itself was not an engineering job. So, when I saw that positions opened up at Da Vinci Satellite, and for the positions of chief engineers, I decided to apply. Of course, I knew I did not have any major experiences yet, but that is also why you join these teams; to gain this experience. Besides, I had a passion for space all along, so I thought this would be a perfect match, which it definitely ended up being.” 

How have these activities impacted your studies?  
“I do see that it makes such a major difference to work in a student team next to your studies. Not only actually recognising, or seeing in practice, what you are learning about, but also your general mindset. I can see this when I work in teams with other people who have worked in student teams as well. They either have more experience with working together like that, or they simply know how to tackle certain challenges and enjoy doing that.  

But in addition, one of the major things that I really liked last year in my Masters, is that I recognise things. So, if they talk about testing, I’m like, oh yeah, I actually did that. I know exactly how this test works because I performed that test. And when you are figuring that out, at that time it was quite difficult. But now, because you are seeing it back in the curriculum, it becomes very easy to connect the dots. That also makes it fun, because you’re learning in different ways. Not because you read it somewhere else, but because you actually saw it in practice.” 

Do you have a fun anecdote from your time at Da Vinci Satellite? 
“I really like that we got the chance to fly in the PH-LAB (the research aircraft of the Aerospace Engineering faculty) for a test. It was honestly a really good test because we found out about things that we did not expect. I won’t go into the very technical details, but basically, we found out that a mechanism that was supposed to prevent an issue, was actually causing it. And it is because of these tests that you find that out. At the same time, it was just an incredibly fun experience, because you get to fly and do parabolic flights with the people, or friends, in your team. So, it was a very helpful, but also really fun experience.” 

How do you combine your studies with your student teamwork? 
“Sometimes, that can indeed be difficult, because it takes a lot of additional time. I personally actually chose to take longer for my studies, because I know that I am working on something that is worth it. I would say without a doubt, that in the end, you are gaining so much more experience that it is definitely worth it. But yes, it can be very difficult to combine it because Aerospace Engineering in itself is already such a time-consuming study. That however also teaches you how to plan and be flexible with your time. Still, of course, it depends a lot. But for me at least, I would say that now is the time to try out things like this. You have these opportunities now, and in the end, it does not really matter if you take a year longer to do your studies. In the end, you might actually like it more, because you get to just be a student, gain a ton of experience, and have fun.” 

What is the most fun aspect of being part of a student team? 
“This is going to sound cliche, but the people. I knew that was one of the reasons I wanted to become a part of the student team, and it is also why I did this in high school. I just love working on a technical challenge with like-minded people who also fully go for it. The nice thing is that you are still a student, so you are not extremely constrained. So, if we want to do a certain task, we just go after it and make sure it happens. That shared mindset is just really nice. Besides that, you are basically having fun together and learning a whole lot at the same time. So, it’s like the best of all worlds, I would say.”  

Do you have a tip or message for prospective students, who might be interested in joining a student team?  
“I would say that right now is the time that you can go after all these things. So, if you want to join a crazy challenge because you think it’s really interesting, just go for it! You will work it out along the way, and you’ll learn a lot of things. Sometimes, it can be frustrating because things will not go right the first time, or maybe it is just a very difficult challenge. But on the other hand, that is exactly why you should be doing it. Now, you can join all these difficult, challenging things, and learn a lot while having fun together. It really is a safe space to try out new things and that is what makes it so nice. But the main reason to join a student team, I would say, is because you get to put your theoretical knowledge into practical experiences, really increasing your understanding of such technical topics.”