Council For Science Technology
July 12
15:34
2024
The Prime Minister invited the Council for Science and Technology to offer advice on moon-shots that could showcase the UK as a science superpower.
The CST has provided advice on how a moon-shot might be defined and highlights 7 principles for formulating and choosing a moon-shot theme.
- Excite and inspire the public, academia, and industry
- Help solve an important societal issue
- Be truly disruptive and ground-breaking
- Focus on areas where the underpinning science is at a stage to make a major breakthrough feasible
- Be specific and well-defined in what it sets out to achieve, with a clear timeframe for completion
- Take advantage of areas where the UK is, or is poised to be, a world leader
- Generate significant additional benefits.
The letter also highlights factors that the government should consider for delivery of a successful moon-shot programme.
In October 2018, the Government Chief Scientific Adviser and CST developed advice on principles for running a successful mission.