Every year in Czechia, autumn belongs to space. As in years past, the eighth edition of Czech Space Week, the biggest domestic festival of space activities, again is being prepared by the Ministry of Transport together with CzechInvest, Planetum – the Prague Observatory and Planetarium, the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and other partners. From 20 to 26 October, both visitors and experts in the field of space can expect a bountiful programme in the cities of Prague and Brno, as well as in various regions of the country.
This year’s festival, which is intended to inspire, educate and connect generations, is closely associated with the national Czech Journey to Space project, which shows that the Czech Republic is already an active part of major space projects and that we can rightly be proud of Czech successes in this field. Czech Space Week is a symbol of Czechia’s growing ambition in the areas of space research, innovation, industry and education. This year’s edition of the festival comes at a time when the Czech space programme is becoming a real part of the European and global space ecosystem. Thanks to the Czech Journey to Space project, which supports education, science and industry, a concrete plan is being formulated with the aim of involving the Czech Republic in international space activities.
Step by step to the future, which begins on Earth
Space is becoming an engine of both the Czech economy and education in the country. Every job in the space sector creates additional opportunities in sectors with high value added. In particular, this year’s edition of Czech Space Week shows how Czechia can benefit from these investments – not only technologically, but also in human terms. “Every generation has its own major project, and Czech Journey to Space can be ours. Therefore, Czech Space Week 2025 is for me part of a bigger story – a story about a country that decided to be there when the future of space is written,” says Minister of Transport Martin Kupka.
From space missions and technologies to films and art
Czech Space Week 2025 will offer a diverse programme that brings together the worlds of science, technology, business and culture. As with previous editions of the festival, it will begin with the two-day Space2Business conference at Lichtenstein Palace in Prague, where representatives of companies, startups and investors will meet. The conference will also be attended by representatives of the European Space Agency (ESA) and EUSPA. A special item on the Space2Business agenda will be a press conference featuring, for the first time ever, presentations of Czech scientific and technological experiments that have been evaluated by the European Space Agency and have been recommended for implementation on the Czech side. These experiments will thus head to the International Space Station as part of a prepared Czech mission. Czech universities, research institutes and companies from across the country collaborated on the preparation of the experiments. Each of the projects has the potential to bring forth valuable findings not only for future space missions, but also for practical uses on Earth.
The Space2Business conference will be followed by dozens of events throughout the country – from workshops on the use of data gathered in space (Workshop Copernicus) and a student conference called Next Stop: Space at the Brno Observatory and Planetarium to cultural projects inspired by space exploration. The festival is thus proof of the fact that the Czech space ecosystem has many faces. “Czech Space Week beautifully illustrates the fact that space activities are not solely the domain of scientists and engineers, but also of students, artists, entrepreneurs and everyone who wants to expand the boundaries of knowledge. That is a strength of the Czech Journey to Space project – that it can bring different worlds together and show that space is an inspiration also for our everyday future,” says Tereza Kubicová, deputy director general for technology development at CzechInvest and chief organiser of the Czech Space Week festival, commenting on the programme.
A new feature of this year’s edition is the connection of Czech Space Week with the Czech Startup Week festival, which will jointly bring together the worlds of technology, innovation an business. In addition to a specialised programme, the festival will also offer a number of events for the public and youths. The Lucerna cinema in Prague will be the venue for the final of the Mission: Film students’ competition, in which young creators will present their space films before a jury whose members include the popular Czech actors Anna Geislerová and Jiří Mádl. Hradčanské náměstí will come alive with an early evening show and street performance titled “First Step” by the V.O.S.A. theatre. Another traditional event to be held during this year's festival is Space4Women, a meeting of women working in the space sector, which has the purpose of inspiring female students and young professional women to get involved in the sectors of the future.
This year, for the first time ever, the festival is also associated with the Gaudeamus Brno trade fair, which is annually attended by tens of thousands of students. In cooperation with Brno University of Technology and the Brno Observatory and Planetarium, the unique Czech Space Pavilion will be set up at the trade fair, attracting visitors of all generations to explore the world of Czech astronautics. The Space Pavilion will offer insight into a number of space technologies, as well as interactive elements, simulators and stands staffed by students and professionals from the sectors of the future. “Experience from abroad clearly shows that space is inspiring. Following missions carried out by their national astronauts, Sweden saw a 20% increase among students in STEM subjects, while interest in Poland rose by one-third. We want the Czech mission to bring similar inspiration to the younger generation and to foster development of advanced skills and technologies,” says Václav Kobera, head of the Department of Space Activities and New Technologies and the Czech Space Agency at the Ministry of Transport and coordinator of the national Czech Journey to Space project, describing the importance of inspiring the country’s young people. This year’s edition of Czech Space Week will also include Česká spořitelna’s pavilion of the future at the Prague Exhibition Grounds. Over the course of the entire week, it will be possible to visit an exhibition of the top Czech innovations and technologies and to attend lectures given by leading figures not only in the area of space, but also in the fields of artificial intelligence, gaming and business. This and much more awaits visitors to this year’s Czech Space Week festival across the country.
Czechia is heading for the stars
The past year has brought forth a number of historical milestones in the context of the Czech space programme. The Government of the Czech Republic supported the participation of the first Czech astronaut on a mission to the International Space Station (ISS). He is Major Aleš Svoboda, who last year began training in the European Space Agency’s team of reserve astronauts in Cologne, Germany, and is currently completing the second of three phases of comprehensive astronaut training. Scientific and technological experiments that found success in demanding negotiations with ESA were selected for the prepared Czech mission to the ISS. Czech companies have also done well on the international scene, as they have succeeded in concluding strategic partnerships with the American companies Axiom Space and Vast Space. Emphasis has also been placed on the younger generation, as hundreds of students got involved in educational projects including Zero-G, which enabled them to experience weightlessness. At the same time, Czechia has strengthened its position within ESA, as well as within the Prague-based EUSPA, which manages European satellite programmes.
“Today, space isn’t only about rockets, but also about skills, innovation and collaboration. In the past year, the Czech Journey to Space project has proven that space activities are of major significance for our economy – investments in this area have great return on investment, as every koruna invested in space activities will be returned to us eight times over, while creating jobs with high value added and supporting education in technical fields,” say Minister Kupka, whose department is responsible for space activities, commenting on the national space initiative, and adding: “This year’s Czech Space Week is the place where our vision of journeying to the stars is becoming a reality, where we see that investments in science and education are being transformed into real innovative projects that are pushing all of Czechia forward.”
Contact for the media:
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zdenek.vesecky@czechinvest.gov.cz