CanSat is not just the name of the competition, it is also the name of a small satellite, with the size of a coke can. The competition is organized all over Europe for 16-18 year olds. The purpose of the competition is to make a CanSat which will be launched to a height of 1 km and then will be dropped. During this drop, the teams are carrying out a self-selected mission. The primary mission is to keep contact the entire time, while the satellite sends information such as height, temperature, pressure,… to the ground station. The secondary mission is a mission of choice for each team.

Course of the competition

The CanSat competition consists of different stages. First you have to submit a proposal for the national competition. The best proposals are chosen: these teams receive a budget of €500 and they can start working on their CanSat. They have to submit some reports to keep the jury up-to-date about the project. Then there is a semi-final where the teams have to present their project. The best teams are chosen to participate in the final, where the CanSats are launched. After the launch the teams present their findings. The jury then chooses a winner. The winning team can represent their country in the European competition.