These courses are ideal if you are interested in the design, construction and operation of aircraft but would like to extend your study of aerospace engineering beyond the atmosphere and up into space. Both degrees are accredited by the Royal Aeronautical Society as leading to chartered engineer (CEng) status. What will you study? Year 1 is common across all our chartered engineer status degrees and provides the underpinning skills and knowledge for further specialised study. You will study subjects such as mathematics, electronics and thermodynamics and engineering applications, together with an introduction to the profession of engineering. You will look at the engineering challenges of robotic and human spaceflight (including practical rocketry), hear an astronaut talk and get hands-on experience with real space hardware. Year 2 will introduce you to topics such as aerodynamics, propulsion, structures, dynamics and materials. It includes further study of mathematics, electronics, control and computing. You will also explore the fundamentals of astronautics and the concepts and principles of space flight, space vehicles, launch systems and space operations. You will study subjects such as interplanetary flight, orbit mechanics and rocket propulsion. You will further investigate the specific demands of spaceflight and the benefits of using the space environment. Areas covered will be the definition, analysis and uses of orbits and trajectories; a functional analysis of spacecraft and their payloads; space dynamics (or 'getting around in space and getting to space'); plus a practical design exercise involving rockets. There will also be an industrial visit and guest speakers from industry. Year 3 includes a major astronautics module on space vehicle design. This is divided into critical support functions for space missions (eg operations), core spacecraft subsystems (eg power, communications, orbit selection), mechanical systems (eg propulsion, structures and control) and an introduction to space mission design. Core lecturers will be enhanced by further industry visitor and tours to space companies employing Kingston University alumni. An individual research project which may involve two of the Kingston space facilities (a rocket propulsion lab and a microgravity drop tower) will be carried out in parallel to the taught modules. BEng students will also take part in a group design project similar to the MEng students.

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