07 March 2011
Cosmonaut inspires a new generation
Aerospace engineering student Patrick Leschinski has marked his first day at RMIT University by meeting someone who helped inspire his journey six years ago, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Ivanchenkov.
Aerospace engineering student Patrick Leschinski met Russian cosmonaut Alexander Ivanchenkov on his first day at RMIT.
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A Soyuz pilot and space walker, Mr Ivanchenkov is one of the founders of the International Space Olympics, which Mr Leschinski attended in Korolev, Russia, when he was just 14.
He came 12th overall in a field of 300 Space Olympians from 17 countries including Russia, USA, UK and Germany, as part of the Australian team coached by RMIT Associate Professor Lachlan Thompson.
"I can definitely attribute where I am now to the Space Olympics," Mr Leschinski, who is studying a Bachelor of Engineering (Aerospace Engineering), said.
"It really showed me how much I enjoyed tackling problems and designing solutions.
"I was always interesting in some kind of engineering but the Space Olympics was a turning point, it really set me on the course to studying aerospace at RMIT.
"Meeting Alexander – who not only knew Yuri Gagarin but is a space pioneer in his own right – on my first day at RMIT was an incredible way to start my degree."
Mr Ivanchenkov – who was part of a pioneering 1978 team that spent a record 140 days on board the Salut-6 orbital station and was the first person to play a musical instrument in space – was in Melbourne together with the Head of International Cooperation at the Russian Federation Space Agency, Dr Alexey Korostelev, for the 14th Australian International Aerospace Congress.
Associate Professor Thompson, Chair (Space Systems) of AIAC14, said discussions were currently underway for a proposed joint Russian-Australian venture to establish two major space facilities in Australia.
"The opportunity offered by Roscomos is an exciting one for Australia and opens the possibilities for us take a key role in new space projects, including the first human mission to Mars.
"As Australia’s leading aerospace education institution, RMIT is excited to play a central role in these crucial first steps towards deeper Russian-Australian collaboration in space research.
"With 2011 marking the 50-year anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s historic space flight, it’s an opportune time to both look back on the Russia’s pioneering space efforts and look forward to the possibilities ahead."
The proposed Russian-Australian venture includes a Near Earth Object Space Observation Centre to warn and advise of large space debris and objects heading towards Earth and a Space Mission Control Centre to facilitate mission control management of the International Space Station and future space operations.
Researchers from RMIT’s School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering presented a number of papers at AIAC14, which is the pre-eminent aerospace event in the region.
