New Knowledge, Products or Processes

Guided by the mentorship and support from Associate Professor Moriba Jah (SERC Research Management Committee), SERC student Samantha Le May has been provided opportunities to develop an international network within the Space Debris community.

This support has led to Samantha becoming an active member of the IAA Permanent Committee on Space Debris in September 2017. 

The IAA Permanent Committee on Space Debris is in charge of the coordination of all activities related to Space Debris within the Academy, on topics including space surveillance, tracking, space debris mitigation and regulation.

As the only Australian member of this international committee, Samantha contributes an Australian perspective to discussions and reports prepared by the committee’s working groups. Samantha prepared a section within the IAA Situation Report on Space Debris which outlines Australia’s SSA capability. 

As a whole, the report provides a comprehensive summary of the most significant aspects of space debris, and as such influences mission and country-specific space debris recommendations, and areas of future research.

Samantha’s involvement with the committee has provided her with exposure within the international Space Debris committee, and alongside continued mentorship through the SERC management committee, she was invited to present her research at the UCS Summer Symposium on Global Security in 2018, the 4th Australian/New Zealand Workshop on Space Situational Awareness, and the Women in Space Forum hosted by the South Australian Space Industry Centre.

Further, SERC dedicates a full day at its annual Research Colloquium to provide mentoring to students from space industry key thought leaders on research project progress, as well as presentation skills.

Mentorship provided by SERC-affiliated Researchers, Program leaders, and the Research Management committee has supported SERC students to develop the necessary networking skills needed for a successful career in industry or academia following completion of the SERC education program.

As a result of this support, the following SERC students have been recognised for their communication skills:

• Samantha Le May: 3AF Edmond Brun Silver Medal, Emerging Space Leaders Grant + Fulbright scholarship
• Joe O’Leary: CRC Association ECR Showcase finalist, 3MT poster winner (2017), 3MT poster runner-up (2018)
• Joe O’Leary: invited to give a TedX talk (2019)
• Hansani Thanippuli: 3MT poster winner (2019)
• Richard Samuel: Joan Duffield Special Award, ANU