Professor Anna Hogg Announced as SPAN Co-Chair Nominee of the UK Space Academic Network (SPAN)

For immediate release – Monday 14 July 2025

The UK Space Academic Network (SPAN) is pleased to announce that Professor Anna Hogg has been nominated to serve as its next Co-Chair. This nomination has the support of the current SPAN Co-Chairs, as well as the Working Group leads and deputies, and reflects the strategic continuity and urgency of the work currently underway across the UK space research community given the recent multiple initiatives and strategies from the Government.

Professor Hogg is a Professor of Earth Observation at the University of Leeds and a leading expert in satellite data applications for environmental monitoring. She currently chairs SPAN’s Earth Observation Working Group — a role she will continue until a successor is appointed — and is widely recognised for her leadership in research, policy engagement, and academic collaboration.

Her nomination comes at a time of rapid developments in the sector, including SPAN’s growing role in informing national space strategy, contributing to international collaborations, and ensuring academic voices are represented across government and industry fora. Kate will be giving a keynote speech at the opening plenary session at the UK Space Conference taking place in Manchester on 16–17 July 2025, and Anna will be chairing a plenary session on the morning of day two representing the academic community in her capacity as SPAN Co-Chair nominee.

This is not a wholesale change in leadership or strategy for SPAN; rather, it represents continuity with the existing SPAN strategic direction co-developed by Professor Mark Sims and outgoing Co-Chair, Professor Kate Robson Brown.

Professor Robson Brown has served as SPAN Co-Chair since May 2022. During her tenure, she has been instrumental in helping put academia on a platform alongside government and industry, while also elevating SPAN’s voice in international dialogues around collaboration and capability. Her leadership has helped shape SPAN into a confident, representative and well recognised body within the UK space ecosystem.

To formalise this transition, SPAN will convene a full SPAN Board meeting in September 2025, followed by a public-facing SPAN Town Hall. This will provide an open opportunity for the wider academic community to hear directly from the Co-Chairs, contribute views, and offer the wider membership an opportunity to engage and provide input.

Professor Kate Robson Brown, reflecting on her time as SPAN Co-Chair, said: “Serving as co-Chair of SPAN with Mark has been a highlight of my career. Over these years I have been particularly delighted to support the inclusion of colleagues from the social sciences, arts and humanities into our network, and a deepening of the connections with the wider ecosystem of the space sector in the UK. We are working in times of profound change, but also of opportunity, and as I move on I look forward to finding novel ways of supporting the initiatives Anna and Mark will bring to our sector.”

Professor Mark Sims, SPAN Co-Chair, commented:
“Kate’s leadership role as Co-Chair has been pivotal in helping raise the visibility of academia in the space sector. SPAN are grateful for her help and service and delighted to have Anna step forward at this critical juncture in the Space sector. Her experience and insight will be invaluable as we seek to further build on SPAN’s momentum and continue to strengthen academic contributions to the UK’s space ambitions.”

Professor Anna Hogg, SPAN Co-Chair Nominee commented: “Space technology is essential to our daily lives while also inspiring school children to pursue rewarding, high-skilled scientific careers. Serving as Chair of the SPAN Earth Observation Working Group I have enjoyed collaborating with academics and industry experts to identify scientific and industrial strategic goals that shape the direction of our Earth Observation capability. Looking to the future as I join Mark as Co-Chair of SPAN, I am excited to build on the strong foundations laid by Kate, to champion the world-leading expertise of the UK’s space academic network and to unlock opportunities for growth and innovation.”

For more information about the Space Academic Network, visit www.span.ac.uk

Media Contact: info@span.ac.uk

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