ARIS – a space to grow

by Evgeniya Vorobyeva, Post-Doc in Electrocatalysis and Surface Science, 7 April 2020

Our yearly goal – Spaceport America Cup – was cancelled due to the coronavirus epidemic. The way the ARIS team continue with the working process and keep up their motivation is by sharing the achievements of each member.

ARIS is a student-led initiative for space in the German part of Switzerland. We’ve been working on building a rocket to participate in Spaceport America Cup this summer, and putting all our effort into winning the event. As you can imagine, the competition has been cancelled due to corona-virus. So we’re stuck at home, unable to continue manufacturing the rocket…

Well, you might think we’re down and no longer motivated to go on. But that’s not the case. We‘re making the best of the situation, and at last have time for those tasks we’ve been putting aside – developing out internal IT system, documenting progress, planning strategies for the future and shaping our vision. All our meetings have been transferred to Zoom, and every day we have coffee-breaks when we can chat.

ARIS members stopping for an e-coffee break (photo credit: Shady Elshater)

ARIS is a space to grow – this is our motto. We follow this approach to cope with isolation by learning new things and improving our existing skills. For example, some people start coding or learning Blender software. Some have a passion for cooking and explore new recipes for pizza, cannelloni or croissants. To relax mentally, our members choose sport, yoga or playing the guitar. Some are even mastering knitting socks. We also appreciate time with family members who always support us and make the home office cosy!

Exploring new recipes for favourite dishes (photo credit: Shady Elshater)

Fresh croissants for breakfast (photo credit: Evgeniya Vorobyeva)

Mastering knitting (photo credit: Andrea Schorn)

Playing the guitar (photo credit: Mirela Minkova)

Little family members help in everyday work (photo credit: Griffin Norris)

Most important, we share our small personal achievements and celebrate them together. All these keep us motivated to achieve our goal, and help us re-assess the situation and develop an alter-native plan. Because we want to ensure that this year we launch our first supersonic rocket and fire our 5 kN hybrid engine!

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About the author

Evgeniya Vorobyeva is a postdoctoral researcher at ETH Zurich specialising in electrocatalysis and surface science. As the treasurer of ARIS, she helps to shape the organisation with other board members.