Brussels, 07/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission launched a drawing competition on Thursday 7 April to raise young children's interest in space. The child with the best drawing in each member state will have his or her name given to one of the 30 satellites of the Galileo programme to give the EU its own satellite navigation system. The child with the best drawing in each member state will have his or her name given to a satellite of the Galileo programme. The first two satellites to be launched in September will bear the names of the winning children from Belgium and Bulgaria, where the competition opens on 10 April. The same competition will get under way in the other 25 member states in September for giving names to the following satellites which will be launched on a gradual basis as of 2012. The competition is for children aged 9 - 11 and the order is determined by the alphabetical order of the member states.
From 10 April until 31 May, children living in Belgium and Bulgaria and born in 2000, 2001 and 2002 are invited to make a drawing related to space and aeronautics, scan it or take a digital photograph of it and upload it onto a specified website. In each country, a 3 person national jury will select the best drawing and the winning child will have his or her name given to one of the two satellites that are scheduled to be launched in September. The same scheme will apply to the other 25 member states where the competition will open on 1 September and close on 15 November. Satellite launches will take place regularly as of 2012 until the full constellation (which should count 30 satellites) is complete. (A.By./transl.fl)