Destination Space

Destination Space is a national STEM programme, funded by the UK Space Agency, created by ASDC for Science Centres and Museums around the UK. Its purpose is to engage, inspire and involve families with school-age children, school groups and communities across the UK with the amazing stories, science and achievements of human and robotic space exploration.

The latest phase of the Destination Space project focussed on five science centres across the UK that had previously delivered both Destination Space and the NERC funded Operation Earth programmes. The aim was to focus into a pilot that explored, in depth, the overlapping key themes of these two projects, to inform and develop our subsequent programme Our World From Space, which takes a global-to-local narrative, exploring the theme of relevance and role of space science for the future sustainability of our home Planet Earth
Dynamic Earth, Glasgow Science Centre, National Space Centre, W5, and Xplore! Science Discovery Centre supporting the key phase by developing and projects delivering multidisciplinary events and activities to an exceptionally high standard including shows, workshops, sleepovers and meet-the-space-scientist events to engage audiences across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

An overview of all phases of this project:

Phase 1 of Destination Space began October 2015 and completed in January 2017. By the end of the first official reporting period, over 733,000 children and adults participated in school workshops, family shows and launch events at 20 Science Centres and Museums across the UK as part of the national Destination Space programme as part of a national celebration of Tim Peake's mission to the ISS.
At a follow up report in 2017, Phase 1 had left an incredible legacy with an overall wider audience number of 2,050,432 reached through the centres. Of these, 900,000 were school children age 5-14 in curriculum-linked space workshops and 75,741 people met and spoke with a space scientist or engineer. The evaluation of over 12,000 school students showed that boys and girls enjoyed the activities equally and were equally inspired and engaged by them.
Take a look at the UK Space Agency's Principia website here

Phase 2 of Destination Space built on the success of phase 1, working with thirteen Science Centres and continuing to bring the latest space engineering and space science directly to families, schools and communities across the UK, in partnership with the UK Space Agency. It focused on UK spaceports, satellite applications and space exploration – particularly exploration of the Moon and Mars. It began with a pilot (Level 1) in March 2018 and completed with Level 2 in March 2021. By spring 2021, the project had reached a further 340,000 people exceeding targets despite the COVID pandemic.

Phase 3 provided training for science communicators and community engagement professionals with the latest ideas, innovation, upcoming missions and developments relating to key programme content areas of particular significance to the UK during the project period. This phase of Destination Space specifically emphasises and foreground the important and relevant role that space plays in monitoring and tackling climate change. Centres were able to engage over 67,000 people via in-person and digital engagement. The vast majority of activities (around 62,000) were able to take place in person.

This programme focused on the following areas linked to current developments for the UK in space:

• Climate Science & COP26
• The Webb Telescope
• Spaceports

Phase 4 (also known as an Interim phase) focussed on five cross-over centres to inform the development of Our World From Space. The five centres delivered 116 unique events within a compressed delivery period, engaging with over 16,000 participants between November 2022 and March 2023. Along with the metrics reporting, ASDC asked centres to focus on key questions in their audience surveys the explored the relevance of space, not only to their daily lives, but also to the health of the planet.

Please visit the reports section to download the project evaluations.