Category Archives: Event

Event

IAA Lecture, Wed 5th January, 7.30 pM – Prof Antonio Martin Carillo

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Comets and their tales

Comets are very much in the news, with the recent visit by Comet Neowise. They have a much wider significance in astronomy than just providing spectacular sights in the sky, as their origin, development and composition tell us a great deal about the solar system as a whole.

Biography

Antonio Martin-Carrillo is an UCD Ad Astra fellow/Assistant Professor in the School of Physics. He graduated with a BSc and MSc in Physics with Astronomy from University Complutense Madrid. Following 2 years working at the European Space Agency as part of the XMM-Newton space observatory calibration team, he moved to UCD where he completed his PhD investigating gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and pulsars.

He is currently a member of the Space Science Group studying the transient Universe and in particular the prompt and afterglow emission of GRBs using high-energy space observatories and ground-based telescopes such as UCD’s Watcher robotic telescope.

His research also includes the development of software tools for advanced data analysis. As such he is an ambassador and collaborator on the Astropy project aimed at providing a wide range of software packages written in Python for use in astronomy. He is also a member of the INTEGRAL multi-messenger group searching for gamma-ray counterparts to gravitational waves, neutrino events and other transient sources; the ATHENA X-ray space observatory, an ESA large mission scheduled to launch in 2028, and the THESEUS space telescope, currently in its study phase with ESA.

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Zoom Meeting
Time: Jan 5, 2022 07:15 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86772024897?pwd=YzhURHhRTjJheE5QZnlBREl4dDZmUT09

Meeting ID: 867 7202 4897
Passcode: 132894

The room will open around 19:15 to allow for a prompt start

This talk will also be Simulcast on our YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/user/irishastronomy/videos

Event

IAA Zoom Meeting Weds Dec 8th – Dr Jamie Robinson

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“Asteroids: the key to unlocking the secrets of the Solar System ”

Synopsis

Asteroids are the small bodies of the Solar System which represent the leftovers of planet formation. They can be found throughout the Solar system, mainly in the rocky asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter and the more icy region beyond the orbit of Neptune.


By considering the physical properties of these bodies and how they came to be on their present orbits one can investigate the various processes of Solar System formation. Asteroids provide clues as to how the first solid bodies grew out of the disk of gas and dust from which the Sun was born, and how these small bodies then grew into the major planets. Furthermore their distribution throughout space tells us how the planets would have migrated from their birth locations in the early Solar System, scattering these asteroids as they went.


The asteroids are an invaluable key to unlocking the secrets of the Solar System, helping to explain how planets such as the Earth came to be. They are both the building blocks of our planet from which life developed and also a threat to life in terms of their continuing collisions with the Earth. As such they are fundamentally linked to understanding our place in the Universe and are an extremely fruitful subject of study.

Bio:

James (Jamie) Robinson

2011 – 2016: MPhys Durham University (year abroad at McMaster University 2013 – 2014)
2016 – 2020: PhD at Queen’s University Belfast on The Origin and Evolution of Transneptunian Binaries. 2017 LSST Data Science Fellow
2020 – 2021: Postdoc at QUB, ATLAS asteroid science
2021 – present: Postdoc at University of Edinburgh, LSST software tools

My research has covered a wide range of topics within the realm of small Solar System bodies. These objects represent the leftovers of planet formation and have a diverse range of physical and orbital properties. My research makes use of intensive computations and data science techniques to simulate and investigate the properties of small Solar System bodies. Studying such objects provides a valuable constraint on how the Solar System formed and gives us insight into how the Earth, and life, came to be.


For my PhD I conducted intensive numerical simulations to study how a binary pair of planetesimals can form through the collapse of a cloud of pebbles in the outer reaches of the early Solar System. I also considered how such binaries evolved under the effects of planetary migration which is believed to produce the Solar System of today.


I then took up a postdoctoral position at QUB which brought my research into the inner Solar System. I have utilised the large database of photometry from the ATLAS survey to study the surface properties of asteroids. The Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System is one of several wide field surveys that scan the sky discovering transient phenomena and I assist in efforts to analyse the data in real time searching for possible Earth impactors.


I have recently started a postdoc at the University of Edinburgh where I will focus on developing software tools for the next big wide field survey, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time. LSST will be a revolution in Solar System science, discovering and characterising an order of magnitude more objects than previously known.

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Zoom Meeting
Time: Dec 8, 2021 07:15 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85927713853?pwd=QzNIQmU5bldla3hVcEQ2YmhFZlZnUT09

Meeting ID: 859 2771 3853
Passcode: 796033

The room will open around 19:15 to allow for a prompt start

This talk will also be Simulcast on our YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/user/irishastronomy/videos

Event

IAA Lecture 24th Nov7:30pm – Dr Laura Hayes (TCD)

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“The Active Sun – Observations of our Closest Star”.

Details to follow…..

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Zoom Meeting
Time: Nov 24, 2021 07:15 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81395684573?pwd=dzVyRWNxVXBQdDhFa0FQYkVMNFF0QT09

Meeting ID: 813 9568 4573
Passcode: 986079

The room will open around 19:15 to allow for a prompt start

This talk will also be Simulcast on our YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/user/irishastronomy/videos

Event

IAA Zoom Lecture 10th Nov 19:30 – Dr. Donnacha O’Driscoll (IAS)

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“Earth’s Constant Companion”

Synopsis.

This will be a general presentation on Earth’s constant celestial companion, the Moon. Its formation, physical attributes, movements, effects on the Earth and how to observe it. It will be a fun, entertaining and hopefully informative talk that will have something in it for all ages with no prior knowledge required

Biography

It is presented by IAS member Dr. Donnacha O’Driscoll who is a scientist by profession. He is the General Manager of the Science Foundation Ireland research centre ‘Insight’ in UCD.

Although professionally he has worked in the biotechnology and data analytical sectors, his passion is in astronomy and in particular Lunar astronomy.

He has been an active observer of the Moon for over 40 years and has presented many talks on the subject in that time. He established and runs the website www.themoon.ie which is an outreach project, acting as a source of information and teaching aids on all things Lunar to individuals young and old and to various groups and schools.

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Lecture
Time: Nov 10, 2021 07:15 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86346334772?pwd=L3AvZE9KZjZPMHZBT25BbkNkUUhHZz09

Meeting ID: 863 4633 4772
Passcode: 859645

The room will open around 19:15 to allow for a prompt start

This talk will also be Simulcast on our YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/user/irishastronomy/videos

Event

International Observe the Moon Night, Sat 16th October, at Delamont Country Park

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Note This event is cancelled due to poor weather

Near Killyleagh, Co Down, 7.30 p.m.

54.384, -5.677

https://goo.gl/maps/gBHCfJXcJtH9QMhY9

Meet in the main car park. We will provide some telescopes, but bring your own, or binoculars, if you can. We will be providing sanitising wipes for eyepieces and hand controls etc, and these will be wiped clean between users. We strongly advise that only those who are double-vaccinated, or who have had Covid and recovered and with at least one vaccination, should attend.

We will take phone numbers of all groups attending, anyone bringing a telescope will also need to bring a pack of antibacterial wipes, and wipe eyepiece cups and focuser knobs for each viewer, and all telescope operators to wear a mask at close quarters etc.

We will be introducing more Observing nights – see this page for dates. The Covid Pandemic isn’t over so we will need to follow precautions as outlined above to keep us all as safe as possible.

Event

IAA Lecture, Weds 13th October 19:30

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“Habitability beyond our solar system”, by Professor Chris Watson, 

Deputy Head of the School of Mathematics and Physics, Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB

Synopsis:

What do we mean by ‘habitability’ and ‘habitable’? How do we define it? Do we even know what ‘habitable’ looks like? What’s the problems with determining whether something is habitable? Why are we looking in the places we’re currently looking? Actually, are we even looking in the right places?

 I’ll talk about the current scientific thoughts surrounding these fundamental questions, what is driving these thoughts, and why it’s so difficult for an astrophysicist like myself to answer these questions.

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Zoom Lecture Prof Chris Watson
Time: Oct 13, 2021 07:15 PM London

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85214388350?pwd=a09KU2h5Z2NmcE45QW9sK0RJbkVLUT09

Meeting ID: 852 1438 8350
Passcode: 376019

The room will open around 19:15 to allow for a prompt start

This talk will also be Simulcast on our YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/user/irishastronomy/videos

Event

IAA Zoom Lecture 29th September

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IAA Public Lecture, Wed 29 September, 7. 30 p.m., by Zoom. “Astronomy, Ireland and UNESCO World Heritage” by Prof. Michael Burton, Director of Armagh Observatory & Planetarium.

Abstract: In 2019 UNESCO inscribed two astronomical sites for World Heritage based on their Outstanding Universal Values: Jodrell Bank & Risco Caido. Jodrell’s nomination centred on its pioneering role in the development of radio astronomy and extant examples of scientific infrastructure from the discipline’s origins to today.


  Ireland also has outstanding astronomical astronomical heritage through the pioneering role in development of the field of astronomy played by the observatories of Birr, Dunsink and Armagh. Birr with the Leviathan, the largest telescope in the world for 69 years, providing the seeds that led to the concept of other galaxies, as well as the birth of infrared astronomy. Dunsink and Armagh Observatories represent a key step in the development of the telescope itself, when the design of the building they are housed in became central to their function. Armagh has since continuously been occupied by astronomers, with three generations of telescopes from the 19th century within that illustrate the development of clock-driven equatorial telescope over that period.
  

The new inscriptions of Jodrell Bank and Risco Caido to the UNESCO World Heritage list raise the question of whether Ireland’s astronomical heritage may also be worthy of such recognition?
   This talk will overview the astronomical history of these Irish observatories and the possibility of seeking UNESCO World Heritage listing for them, as well as some of the issues that must be considered if doing so.

ZOOM, etc, Details.

Time: Sep 29, 2021 07:15 PM London
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88343902455?pwd=UVlqQTdXU1MyNmFOSnFoMHplQmZuUT09
Meeting ID: 883 4390 2455
Passcode: 536349

Event

IAA Season Opener – Zoom Lecture Weds 15th Sept 19:30

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“The Gravitational-Wave Optical Transient Observer and Cataclysmic Variables“, by Christopher Duffy, Armagh Observatory and Planetarium

SYNOPSIS: 

Following the observation of the first binary neutron star merger in 2017 a new frontier in multi-messenger astronomy has opened up, combining Gravitational Wave and optical astronomy. The Gravitational-Wave Optical Transient  Observatory (GOTO) is a robotic observatory designed with this kind of astronomy at its heart, designed to make use of large instantaneous sky coverage and an automatic scheduler to rapidly followup on detected Gravitational Waves events. This talk will outline the need for observatories such as GOTO, its design and operation and what can be achieved using GOTO. It will further go into detail on one of the leading secondary science goals of GOTO, Cataclysmic Variables, their often varied behaviour and why they are of great interest to us.”

 Speaker Biography:

Chris is a third year PhD student at Armagh Observatory and Planetarium and Warwick University. Originally from Scotland Chris studied for his undergraduate and masters degrees at Glasgow University. His PhD is focused on studying transient objects in the night sky; mainly outbursts from Cataclysmic Variables, using wide field survey telescopes. As part of this work Chris is a member of both the GOTO and NGTS (Next Generation Transit Survey) consortia.”

Paul Evans is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: IAA Zoom Meeting
Time: Sep 15, 2021 07:15 PM London

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Meeting ID: 859 7958 2176
Passcode: 918551

Event

MAJOR METEOR SHOWER BEGINS

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The annual Perseid Meteor shower is one of the two best each year, and this year conditions are favourable, with no bright moonlight to spoil the show.


Meteors, often called Shooting Stars or Falling Stars, are just tiny bits of debris in space which plough into our atmosphere at very high speed and ‘burn away’ in a streak of light lasting just a second or so.
Most of the annual meteor showers are caused by streams of tiny particles emitted from comets as they orbit around the Sun, and the Perseids originate from Comet Swift-Tuttle, named after the two astronomers who discovered it. The Earth passes through this shower of tiny particles each August, with the maximum occurring on the night of August 11-12th, and especially 12-13th, when up to 80 meteors per hour can be observed under ideal conditions in the early hours of the 13th. However, some Perseids can be seen from the beginning of the month up to about the 20th, although the rates are much lower the further away from the date of maximum.
They are called Perseids because they all seem to come from a point in the sky in the constellation of Perseus. They can appear anywhere in the sky, at random, but if you trace the direction of their tracks backwards, they will all appear to come from a small area in Perseus, which lies along the Milky Way. 


Perseus will be rising in the North East when the sky gets dark, and the number of meteors seen will increase from then as Perseus gets higher up in the East and then almost overhead, until dawn twilight gets too bright.
The young crescent Moon will set as twilight ends, so moonlight will not interfere this year.


You don’t need a telescope, or even binoculars, to see them, just your own eyes. But you must allow time for your eyes to adapt to the darkness before you’ll start to see any: if going out from a bright room, this takes 10 minutes for a reasonable view, but around 20 minutes to get the best view. For comfort, use a reclining chair or lounger, and wrap up well as it will get quite cool after a while.


And you should try to observe from the darkest location possible, away from light pollution, i.e. the effects of bright city lights, or even nearby street lights or security lights. If you can see the Milky Way, you’ve got a reasonably good location. The new OM/Davagh Dark Sky Park in the Sperrins is being developed for observing events such as this.
Although they appear to come from Perseus, they can appear anywhere in the sky, and the best place to look is about 50 degrees above the horizon (a bit more than halfway up to the overhead point, and about the same distance to left or right of the radiant, in whichever direction you can get the clearest and darkest view. Obviously if it’s cloudy, you won’t see any, but if you look on the few nights on either side of the 12th/13th, you should still see quite a good display if it’s clear then.
Perseid meteors are fast, as they collide with Earth at a speed of almost 60 km per second. There are a good proportion of bright ones, although as with all showers, there are many more faint ones than bright ones. That’s why you’ll see more from a very dark site, and when your eyes have fully dark-adapted.


METEOR PHOTOGRAPHY:   If you have a digital SLR which can give longish time exposures, and you can manually focus it on infinity, and adjust it to a high ISO (film speed equivalent), you can image the meteors with a bit of luck. Use the widest-angle lens you have. It will help to have a tripod.   Point the camera about 50° up in the sky, about 40° from the radiant, for best results. Consult your camera handbook, or experiment with exposures until the sky fogging becomes too severe. Start with exposures of about 10 minutes, and see if the background is still dark; if not, reduce the exposure times a bit. But usually the bright meteors pass just outside the field of view of the camera!

 NOTES TO EDITORS:1. The Irish Astronomical Association is a registered charity dedicated to promoting interest in, and information about, astronomy and space and related topics. It is the oldest and largest astronomical society based in N. Ireland, and the largest amateur astronomy society in Ireland .2.  The meteors we see burn up at heights of about 100 km down to 80 km. We don’t see the actual meteor itself – just the streak of ionised light which is created as the particle burns away.
Terry Moseley