Recently Prachi became a technical volunteer at Lunar Zebro, an innovative project which develops a moon rover.
In March 2018, Prachi started her career at the Technical Software unit at ALTEN in Capelle a/d IJssel as a Technical Consultant. She is driven by the impact of technology on society, and thus pursued a Bachelor’s in Engineering in Electronics and Communication in New Delhi, followed by an MSc in Electrical Engineering specialized in Telecommunications at the TU Delft. To give a new dimension to her experience and personality, she sought out a volunteering opportunity where she could actively participate, preferably in the technology sector. And boy, did she find one … Prachi is now volunteering as the Partner Relations Manager for an innovative space project.
What do you do at ALTEN?
Within ALTEN, I wear several hats: I am the Product Owner for the Test Masterclasses, I am an ALTEN Ambassador and I organize the knowledge evenings or ‘Kennisavonden’.”
You also work for Lunar Zebro, what do they do?
“Outside my work at ALTEN, I volunteer at Lunar Zebro. This is a faculty project of the TU Delft, where 30-35 students are working on a unique moon rover – the smallest and lightest in the world. Our goal is to get this rover flight-ready by 2022.
Lunar Zebro’s mission is to go to the moon and stay there for at least one moon day, which is 14 earth days. During this time, the rover will explore the surface and carry out the
ground imaging. Maybe in the future, it will be possible to have more of these rovers sent to the moon at the same time, to enable rover swarming. It weighs only about 1.5 – 2 Kgs, so it can travel along with any kind of vehicle.
One of the things that makes this rover unique is the camera, called the SHRIMP. This is a Small High-Resolution Independent Modular Photographer, the world’s smallest student-built camera to take pictures of the lunar surface. This camera system was built in-house and weighs less than 3 grams! The rover also has a unique locomotion and obstacle avoidance system.”
What do you do for them?
“In my role as the Partner Relations Manager, I enable the project by securing new partners and keeping our current partners connected to the project. My team and I secure new partners who could help us with the technical design, or support us financially, or maybe help us launch. Most of our partners are in technology, so they help us with the specialized knowledge and parts needed to design such a rover, and also participate in the critical design review sessions.
I make sure that our current partners and sponsors are kept in the loop about the progress of the project. Pre-Corona we used to do this by organizing physical events and sessions. This has become more challenging now, and we constantly innovate on new means of communication and collaboration.”
What made you decide to do this?
“Challenging volunteer work has always excited me. During my studies at the TU Delft, I was on the Board of Studies for my faculty, and back in India, I have volunteered at
AIESEC, a global youth leadership platform. I was looking for something that would allow me to actively use my talents and give a new dimension to my knowledge and experience. I came across a lot of professional and women networks but realized that you could join only as a member, and I was looking for something more active.
One day, I came across the Head of Operations for Lunar Zebro looking for new members on LinkedIn. And that was it! I have been working with this project since July, and it has turned out to be more exciting than I initially thought. It’s a great challenge and I love being in this new technical space.”
Would you like more information about Lunar Zebro or are you interested in joining as a partner? Check out their website at https://zebro.space/
Prachi Sachdeva
Technical Consultant
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