Elise Wright Knutsen

• Retselis, Anastasios-Faidon; Knutsen, Elise Wright; Holdcroft, Sam; Viet, Shayla; Wahlén, Rebecka & Virdis, Mario [Show all 19 contributors for this article] (2026). CENSSAT-1: A space weather mission and an educational platform. In Detrell, Gisela; Alarcia, Ramón María García; Messina, Vincenzo & Kinnaird, Alexander (Ed.), Proceedings of the 5th Symposium on Space Educational Activities (SSEA). Technical University of Munich. p. 852–857. doi: 10.14459/2026MD1857465. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Symposium on Space Educational Activities (SSEA), organised by the European Space Agency’s Education Office, provides a forum for university students, professionals working in education, and other professionals in industry or agencies to present and discuss their experiences organising, running and/or participating in Educational Activities related to Space. After successful past events in Padova (2015), Budapest (2018), Leicester (2019), and Barcelona (2022), the 5th SSEA was held in April 2026 (the 8th, 9th, and 10th) in the TUM Aerospace Campus in Willy-Messerschmitt-Strasse 5, Taufkirchen, Germany. The local organisation team was led by the Technical University of Munich (TUM), involving Professors, PostDocs, PhD Candidates, and Master’s and Bachelor’s students, in close collaboration with the Bavarian aerospace ecosystem partners.

• Knutsen, Elise Wright; McConnochie, Timothy H.; Lemmon, Mark; Donaldson, Chris; Francis, Raymond & Legett, Carey [Show all 28 contributors for this article] (2025). Detection of visible-wavelength aurora on Mars. Science Advances. 11(20). doi: 10.1126/sciadv.ads1563. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Mars hosts various auroral processes despite the planet’s tenuous atmosphere and lack of a global magnetic field. To date, all aurora observations have been at ultraviolet wavelengths from orbit. We describe the discovery of green visible-wavelength aurora, originating from the atomic oxygen line at 557.7 nanometers, detected with the SuperCam and Mastcam-Z instruments on the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover. Near–real-time simulations of a Mars-directed coronal mass ejection (CME) provided sufficient lead-time to schedule an observation with the rover. The emission was observed 3 days after the CME eruption, suggesting that the aurora was induced by particles accelerated by the moving shock front. To our knowledge, detection of aurora from a planetary surface other than Earth has never been reported, nor has visible aurora been observed at Mars. This detection demonstrates that auroral forecasting at Mars is possible, and that during events with higher particle precipitation, or under less dusty atmospheric conditions, aurorae will be visible to future astronauts.

• Virdis, Mario; Knutsen, Elise Wright; Kohfeldt, Anja; Jebali, Ramsey Al; Teodoro, Luis Filipe Alves & Skauli, Torbjørn [Show all 12 contributors for this article] (2024). University of Oslo CENSSAT-1 mission concept. Proceedings of the International Astronautical Congress. ISSN 0074-1795. Full text in Research Archive
• Kohfeldt, Anja; Knutsen, Elise Wright; Enoksen, Kristian; Pérez, José Miguel González & Grande, Jøran (2024). Lessons from the Launch: Reflections from the First Semester of UiO's Space Systems Project Course. Proceedings of the International Astronautical Congress. ISSN 0074-1795. p. 311–316. doi: 10.52202/078378-0035. Full text in Research Archive

View all works in NVA

• Kohfeldt, Anja; Knutsen, Elise Wright; Guzik, Matylda N. & Perez, Jose Miguel Gonzalez (2026). Project-based Learning in the Space Systems Master’s Degree Programme at the University of Oslo. doi: 10.14459/2026md1857555. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  In 2023 the University of Oslo (UiO), Department of Technology Systems (ITS) established a new master’s degree study programme in Space Systems. From the beginning we focused on a system approach, setting space technology in the context of their operational environment and applications. Thus, we incorporate not only technology-focused theoretical lectures but also a diverse range of practical experiences and exercises, workshops in systems engineering, and numerous project opportunities. A highlight of our programme is the project course in the second semester. In a cooperation with Andøya Space Education, students develop a mini-mission concept, design the payload, build, integrate, test, launch the probe, and analyse the collected data. Throughout this process, they meet all standard milestones, gaining valuable experience in documentation, presentation skills, teamwork, and deliverables management under time constraints. To deepen specific field knowledge and foster engagement, we recommend a two-semester master’s thesis project, during which students profit from the research environment at ITS and the Centre for Space Sensors and Systems (CENSSS), with collaborating institutions and industry partners. CENSSS is currently developing CENSSAT-1, a 16U CubeSat for monitoring the interaction between solar activity and Earth’s atmosphere. This CubeSat mission primarily involves PhD fellows and master’s students and offers a wide array of relevant master’s thesis topics, providing direct experience with real space mission development. In this paper, we share our approach to hands-on education within the master’s programme in Space Systems and summarise our insights gained over almost three years of operation.

• Holdcroft, Sam; Bocci, Alessio; Scholtz, Laura-Kristin; Retselis, Anastasios-Faidon; Knutsen, Elise Wright & Jebali, Ramsey Al [Show all 20 contributors for this article] (2025). CENSSAT-1 mission concept: a CubeSat for space weather monitoring. doi: 10.5281/ZENODO.17036544. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This paper presents an introduction to the CENSSAT-1 mission, an 8U CubeSat, which aims to study space situational awareness. It will investigate the effects of space weather on Earth from a 500 km orbit, using a camera, multi-purpose particle detector, and a Langmuir probe. It will additionally monitor space debris using a radar instrument, and conduct experiments on optimal control and drag based manoeuvring. CENSSAT-1 is aiming for launch in 2027.

• Espy, Patrick Joseph; Knutsen, Elise Wright & Bender, Stefan (2019). Microwave Radiometer Observations of Mesospheric Ozone Loss over Antarctica Associated with Particle Precipitation. Full text in Research Archive

View all works in NVA