European Week of Astronomy being hosted by Hertfordshire
More than 1000 astronomers and space scientists will gather at the University of Hertfordshire next week for the European Week of Astronomy and Space Science (EWASS), incorporating the 2009 Royal Astronomical Society National Astronomy Meeting (NAM 2009) and the European Astronomical Society Joint Meeting (JENAM 2009), which runs from 20-23 April.
Highlights of the event, which will take place at the University’s de Havilland Campus are:
• An opening speech by Lord Drayson, the UK Minister of Science;
• Eleven plenary lectures and forty-one parallel sessions featuring recent research on a wide range of astronomical topics, including the formation of planets around other stars, the coming generation of large telescopes, forthcoming missions in the Solar System, cosmology, gravitational waves and lenses, and the current extended minimum of solar activity.
• A Schools Day on Friday 24 April at which Cambridge-born NASA Astronaut, Michael Foale, will field an “Ask an Astronaut” session; where students will be shown ExoMars, a space rover which will be used on a future Mars mission, a large model of the Ariane 5 rocket, and a selection of high-powered rockets developed by engineers at the University of Hertfordshire.
• Four public lectures will also be delivered, one on each evening by Michael Foale and three eminent academics in astrophysics.
“The University of Hertfordshire is delighted to be hosting The European Week of Astronomy & Space Science which incorporates both the 2009 NAM and 2009 JENAM,” said Professor Jim Hough, Director of Astronomy Research at the University. “This year, being the International Year of Astronomy, is a particularly important year, and we hope that the meeting will provide the opportunity to show-case European astronomy, space science and planetary science, not only to the community but also to the public.”
A full and up to date schedule of these and other events can be found on the official website at http://www.jenam2009.eu/ Full details of the programme, and abstracts of the presentations and posters, are available on the meeting website at: http://www.jenam2009.eu
The conference is principally sponsored by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and the University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield.
For further information, please Hélène Murphy, Media & PR Officer, University of Hertfordshire, Tel: 01707 28 4095, Email: h.1.murphy@herts.ac.uk