For this 6th session of the REVA Seminar on Space Transportation, 26 participants from 12 cities (Barcelona, Terrassa, Castelldefels, Bordeaux, Brussels, Bruges, Hardthausen/Lampoldshausen, Liège, Madrid, Toulouse, Kourou and Zurich) gathered in Terrassa on 9-12 July. Among them were two "delegations", one from the Lycée Pierre-Paul Riquet, the "Lycée de L'Espace" in Toulouse, with its Headteacher, Pierre Donnadieu, and one from the "Kantonschule Freudenberg" in Zurich, with its Rector, Niklaus Schatzmann. All the participants enjoyed this opportunity to learn about space transportation, and most particularly about launch operations, the subject for this year, but also to discover, or rediscover, Catalonia, as the case may be. The Opening Ceremony took place on 9 July, at the City Hall of Terrassa in the presence of the Councillor for the Presidency, International Relations and Universities, Juan Antonio Gallardo, and of the spokespersons for the various Municipal Council political groupings. Many activities were then organised at ETSEIAT in Terrassa, and EETAC in Castelldefels, two engineering schools being part of UPC-Barcelona TEC, and specialised, in the former instance in aerospace engineering and in the latter in telecommunications and navigation. A number of staff from both engineering schools held lectures or organised lab visits. There were also fascinating experiments demonstrated by Xavier Alabart Lopez, President of Spaii Edutainment and, for the ESA Education Office, by Anu Ojha, Director of Education and Space Communications at the UK National Space Centre, Leicester. On the final day, students from the association EUROAVIA at ETSEIAT, Terrassa conducted experiments as part of a "water rocket workshop". The Seminar benefited greatly from a visit by aerospace firm GTD, specialized in onboard software capabilities and situated in Barcelona’s Olympic quarter. Participants were able to meet several gtd engineers as well as company Chairman, Angel Ramirez. There was also a visit to 22@, the new digital, environmentally-friendly quarter of Barcelona as well as, in the City of Terrassa, to the National Museum of Science and Technology (Mnactec), the Freixa House, and other modernist buildings. On the last day, a very pleasant time was had in the presence of David Grau Castroverde, Deputy to the Mayor of Castelldefels, at a seaside restaurant with an unusual rover demonstration on the beach! The Project Manager of the REVA Seminar, Philippe Noël, ISSAT/CVA, was assisted for the preparation of the Seminar by Ghislaine Fayad (ISSAT) and Claire Kaufeler (CVA). On the ESA side there was a major contribution from the ESA Education Office at ESTEC, with Clara Cruz Niggebrugge and Anu Ojha as well as from the Communication Department. CNES contributed with the participation of Eric Louaas, Senior Project Manager at the Directorate of Launchers, who presented a lecture on “The Future of European space transportation”. Overview of the CVA and its members The Community of Ariane Cities (CVA) was founded in 1998 and registered in France as a non-profit association. It aims to strengthen cooperation between the cities and industrial organizations involved in European space transportation programs and to inform citizens of the benefits of European space transportation activities, with special emphasis on Europe’s Space port in French Guiana. The CVA organizes programs with Member Cities, their universities, educational authorities, schools and industrial companies. The joint programs are technical, cultural, educational and outreach, stressing the importance of intercultural cooperation and helping to build longstanding relationships among citizens, especially the younger generation. Each Ariane City is usually represented by its local or regional administration and partnered by an industrial company. GFTD and Barcelona City are members of CVA 10 years ago already. Terrasa City has joint Barcelona-GTD partnership 2 years ago.
