Engineering: Britain urged to become a satellite nation

Britain can play an important role in space exploration by exploiting its skills in the satellite sector rather than joining the competition in manned space flights, according to David Williams, head of Avanti, a satellite communications company. "There aren't unlimited resources - we have to prioritise in areas where we have an economic advantage," he said.

Britain should be creating the communications infrastructure that will be needed as exploration expands deeper into space, he said. Countries such as the US, China, India and Russia, as well as the European Space Agency, are working on deep-space exploration. "If mankind is going to exploit the resources of the solar system, you are going to have to travel over very long distances and you are going to have to communicate over very long distances and you will need a network of data-relay satellites. The UK has a big advantage. We have the opportunity to control the space internet, which is going to be this network of data-relay satellites."

"The government has taken early-stage technology risk ... which has allowed the development of blue-sky technology. We have manufacturers like SSTL, QinetiQ, Logica and Astrium that are leading the world in certain niche areas."

Williams believes emerging markets are an important opportunity, with a £100m satellite capable of providing the same communications services that would cost tens of billions if they were hard-wired.

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