‘The Goal Is to Create Something New for My Country’

Maria Andreeva

Photo courtesy of Maria Andreeva

Maria Andreeva became interested in satellite engineering in Year 6. Then, she was a prize-winner of the Top Class (Vysshiy Pilotazh) competition, gave lectures for school students, and took part in meetings with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. Two years ago, a satellite she helped develop was launched into space. This year, Maria entered HSE University to study on the Information Science and Computation Technology programme delivered by the HSE Tikhonov Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics (MIEM). In an interview with the HSE News Service, the first-year student spoke about her passion for space and the opportunities she has found at the university.

— Satellite engineering is not the most typical interest for a schoolgirl. How did you get into this field?

— When I was a child, the word ‘space’ made me think of serious scientists who were always doing calculations, building something, and talking in a boring way about things I did not understand. But later, I began to take part in various school projects—first with the Russian Schoolchildren’s Movement, then with the Movement of the First. At that time, I was trying to find my path. I represented my school’s ecology club and wrote research papers in ecology, chemistry, and biology.

In Year 6, I saw a project called Open Space, which offered a chance to travel to Moscow. I am from Rostov-on-Don, and going to the capital without my parents sounded like a great adventure. I applied, sent a simple presentation about satellites, and was invited to the space festival. In Moscow, we visited the Museum of Cosmonautics at VDNH and Star City, where astronauts live and train. I was deeply impressed by meeting cosmonauts and by the atmosphere of space exploration. When I returned home, I began to study satellite building much more seriously.

— You took part in the development and construction of the ArcCube-01 satellite. Can you explain in simple terms what it is used for?

— At first, the satellite was designed as a remote generator of random encryption keys for creating secure communication channels. But during the long development process, we decided to change the technology. The satellite became a data centre for blockchain-based data transmission. Blockchain ensures digital security: users are instantly notified of any intrusion into a communication channel, while the satellite’s position in orbit protects it from physical access. The satellite was launched into space in July 2023.

Photo courtesy of Maria Andreeva

— You met with President Vladimir Putin several times. What did you talk about?

— The first meeting took place as part of the open lesson Conversations about Important Things. I told the President about my scientific work and my outreach activities with children. I also suggested an idea for a career guidance project that would allow school students to visit Roscosmos facilities and learn more about the space industry. After that conversation, he invited me to a personal meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. There, we discussed space exploration together with a delegation from North Korea. During that visit, Vladimir Putin gave me a real launch pad key as a gift and invited me to Baikonur to watch a rocket launch. Of course, I went—it was an absolutely incredible sight! That meeting was very important and meaningful to me.

— How did your connection with HSE University begin?

— In Year 8, I took part in the Top Class (Vysshiy Pilotazh) competition. At the final stage in Moscow, I received my first real evaluation of my scientific work. Before that, I felt that no one took my school projects very seriously, but this time the jury asked genuinely interesting questions—some of which I could not even answer! In the end, I became one of the competition’s prize-winners and later attended a session of the All-Russian Space Programme On Duty for the Planet. There, I also met lecturers from HSE University, and we worked together intensively. It was thanks to those projects and those teachers that I decided to apply to HSE. I am especially grateful to Alexey Kovalenko, Dmitry Abrameshin, Maria Bubnova, and Andrey Abrameshin for their help and support.

— What opportunities has the university opened up for you?

— University life is very different from school, so I am still gradually adapting. There are many opportunities here. I am already involved in several projects—for example, I went to the semi-final of the student project Your Move, where I presented my scientific project designed for school students. I started this work back in school, but now I am developing it further as a university student.

Photo courtesy of Maria Andreeva

I also take part in the Lift to the Future scholarship competition, the Znanie.Lektor competition organised by the Russian Znanie Society, and a contest held by the All-Russian Society of Inventors and Innovators (VOIR). Besides that, I have submitted my projects to other competitions and grant programmes. There are so many of them that I now have to choose which ones to focus on. Another wonderful thing is meeting great people, working in a space laboratory, and communicating with mentors every day. This is exactly how I imagined studying at HSE when I was at school—my dream has come true.

— How do you manage such a busy schedule and still find time to rest?

— My friends often ask me, ‘Masha, do you even know what rest is?’ I do not get much rest in the usual sense, because I like keeping myself busy. I go to the gym, and on the metro I might watch a series. For me, rest does not necessarily mean lying down and doing nothing. I used to sleep very little, especially when I was preparing for the Unified State Examination and taking part in several projects at once. Now I manage to get enough sleep, even though I combine studying, work, and projects. Things are becoming more balanced, and I really like that.

— What is your next goal or dream for the near future?

— I never tell anyone about my dreams—I just move towards them. So, let us put it this way: my next goal is to create something new for my country. That is what matters most to me.