Event

Lecture – Weds 12th December – Paul Evans (IAA) – “Apollo 8 – Christmas Around the Moon”

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Synopsis:
 
Apollo 8 flew to the Moon 50 years ago this Christmas and was a major step on the way to achieving the goal set by John F Kennedy in 1961 of landing a Man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth. Indeed it deserves its own place in history being the first mission in which men  went beyond low earth orbit and escaped the clutches of earth's gravity. The mission went according to plan and delivered one lasting surprise which nobody had anticipated. This is the story, beginning at the end of the Second World War, of how they got there.
 
Biography: 
 
Paul Evans was 7 years old when Apollo 8 went to the Moon and although he had been aware of earlier missions, this was the one which really piqued his lifelong interest in space and astronomy. Paul has lived in Northern Ireland since 2003 during which time he has photographed auroras, noctilucent clouds and many sky objects and has had his photographs displayed in numerous exhibitions and publications in the UK and Ireland. He has travelled extensively and has observed astronomical phenomena and visited space exploration facilities throughout the world. Paul was President of the IAA for five non-consecutive years between 2012 and 2018.
 
Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……
 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
Event

Lecture: Weds 28th November – Prof Stephen Smartt, ARC, QUB, “Kilonovae and the birth of multi-messenger astronomy “

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Here's a synopsis of the talk from Prof Smartt…

"I will describe the remarkable discovery of the first electromagnetic counterpart to a gravitational wave source. The merging neutron star source GW170817 was temporally and spatially coincident with a short gamma ray burst and several teams located a transient optical source within the LIGO-Virgo skymap within 12 hours. A world wide observational campaign on telescopes from x-ray to radio immediately started showing that this electromagnetic transient was unlike any other observed to date. The UV to near-infrared emission showed that high velocity,  low mass material was ejected and powered by the radioactive decay of heavy r-process elements. I will  show how the electromagnetic radiation is consistent with models describing what we expect to see when two neutron stars merge."

 

Prof Stephen Smartt is a Professor in the School of Maths and Physics at QUB. Previously worked at the University of Cambridge and at the Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes on La Palma.  Awarded the George Darwin Lecture of the Royal Astronomical Society in 2018, and previously held two major european awards : an ERC Advanced Grant , and European Young Investigator award. 

Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……
 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
 
Event

Lecture Weds 14th November – Michael O’Connell – “Amateur Observations of Meteors”

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Lecture Intro:
 
This talk outlines where meteors are from, why we have meteor showers and how to observe them.
Michael describes the meteor science that amateur astronomers can play an active role in.  
In particular, the talk outlines how to detect meteors using visual techniques, with cameras and via radio.
The talk also outlines why it's useful to observe meteors as part of a group effort.
 
Speaker Bio:
 
Michael OConnell is the former chairperson of the Irish Federation of Astronomical Societies and Midlands Astronomy Club.
Aside from assisting Dunsink Observatory with outreach projects and organising the annual SOLARFEST solar conference,
Michael is an active member of NEMETODE, a group of amateur astronomers across the UK and Ireland who monitor the night sky for meteors.
During his free time, Michael observes the night sky from his observatory in Monasterevin, Co Kildare. 
 
Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……
 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.

 

Event

Lecture: Weds 31st October – Dr. Marc Sarzi (AOP) – “Supermassive Black Holes, the DNA of galaxies?”

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Abstract: Supermassive black holes, million to billion times more massive than the Sun, are now believed to lurk at the centre of every galaxy. Furthermore, it would appear that supermassive black holes "know" in which galaxy they live, as bigger galaxies contain bigger supermassive black holes and vice versa. This suggests that the formation of galaxies and the growth of supermassive black holes are tightly linked, which is surprising considering that despite their tremendous mass such black holes are still much smaller than their host galaxies, just like DNA molecules to a human body. Could they play a similarly vital role in the growth of galaxies?

 
Bio: Dr. Marc Sarzi is the Head of Research at Armagh Observatory & Planetarium, and is a former SFTC Public Engagement Fellow.
 
Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……
 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
Event

Lecture Weds 17th Oct – Prof Gerry Doyle (AOP) – “The Probability of a Doomsday Solar Superflare: Fact or Fiction?”

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Here's Prof Doyle with the synopsis of his talk…….

"The first part of the talk is on solar flares, how they occur, their energy, etc .. then I go into stellar flares and show data from Kepler on flares from solar-like stars and discuss whether such super-flares could occur on the Sun .. i include spot data over the past 300 years .. what is happening now, predications for the next cycle, how a super-flare could occur on the Sun .. plus observations from 900 years ago."

 

Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……

 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
Event

Irish / World Space Week – 4th – 10th October

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Observing at Delamont Country Park is ON tonight Sat 6th Oct

 

As well as our Lecture with Prof Frank Drury on 3rd October, we hope, weather permitting,  to hold an Observing Night at Delamont Country Park in Co Down on either Friday 5th or Saturday 6th October as part of Irish Space Week, and World Space Week. Keep an eye on this page of the Forum or our Facebook page for the latest update on whether the event is go/no-go.

As well as this, there are many other events taking place throughout Ireland listed on these pages…

Irish Space Week

World Space Week

Event

IAA Lecture Weds 3rd October – Prof Luke Drury (DIAS) – “Multimessenger Astronomy Comes of Age”

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Throughout most of its long history astronomy has been based on the study of light from the stars and other celestial objects. In the language of physics this is photonic astronomy, the photon being the quantum mechanical particle of light. Yet at least two other astronomies are possible according to standard physics. The graviton, the particle asssociated with gravity, and the neutrino, associated with the weak force, share the property of being electrically neutral and stable and can thus propagate undeflected over cosmic distances. Remarkably both these new astronomies have recorded significant developments in the last few years, notably the simultaneous detection of a merging neutron star binary in both gravitational waves and the optical and the recent claim of an association between high energy neutrinos detected in the ice-cube detector and a flaring AGN. 



Professor Luke Drury has recently stepped down as head of Astronomy and Astrophysics in the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. He studied experimental physics and pure mathematics in Trinity College Dublin before a PhD in Astrophysics at the Institue of Astronomy, Cambridge. Subsequently he worked in the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany, before returning to Ireland in 1986

 

Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……

 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
Event

Lecture Weds 19th September – Prof Frank Prendergast, Dublin Institute of Technology – “From Neolithic to Iron Age—three case studies in Irish archaeoastronomy”

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For the season opener we are very pleased to welcome Prof Frank Prendergast from Dublin.

 In his presentation, Frank will focus on contrasting prehistoric monuments where he has made significant discoveries. 
  • The Iron Age post enclosure at Lismullin, Co. Meath, discovered by top-soil stripping associated with the recent development of the M3 motorway, was an extraordinary ceremonial and ritual complex. It is now ranked as one of the most important Irish archaeological discoveries in recent years. The timber structure was the embodiment of structural perfection and symmetry and had an important astronomical alignment, indicative of its importance to the community that built it around 455 BC. 
  • The Neolithic passage tomb at Slieve Gullion, Co. Armagh is now known to be aligned on the setting sun at the winter solstice and is annually celebrated as a cultural heritage event of growing importance. The survey methodology used to make this discovery will be described, as will the broader cultural context and symbolism of the phenomenon. 
  • The third case study will present the author's findings relating to Ireland's largest stone circle located at Grange in Co. Limerick. This Neolithic monument was built  around 2,900 BC and embodies all the hallmarks of a ceremonial complex. But was it used as a calendrical device as is popularly believed? The speaker will confront those questions head on!                 

Doors open about 7.15pm. There is free parking available on the campus in the evenings. Admission Free, including light refreshments. We are located in the Bell Theatre, Department of Mathematics and Physics, QUB – details here……

 
With thanks to the Astrophysics Research Centre, QUB, for assistance with this event.
IAA

IAA Lecture Programme 2018-19

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Subscriptions are now open and renewals due for the New Lecture Season which is almost complete – see below…….

You can join us here……… Membership has been held at £20 individual and £25 family – this has been the case for several years now and represents fantastic value!

Meetings are held at the Bell Theatre in Queen's University Belfast – see here for directions……. The proceedngs begin at 19:30 sharp and begin with the President's Welcome and a warm-up talk by one of our experienced astronomers, followed by the main talk, usually given by a Professional Astronomer. Tea, coffee, biscuits and chat is available after the meeting with proceedings usuall closing around 21:30.

We also run Observing evenings, usually at Delamont Country Park in County Down – details here……….http://irishastro.org/observing

During the course of the year we run a number of outreach sessions at various venues some of which will include the IAA's very popular Stardome Planetarium. Details will appear on this website.

 

Sep 19th – Dr Frank Prendergast, DIT: "From Neolithic to Iron Age – Case Studies in Irish Archaeoastronomy"
 
Oct 3rd –  Prof Luke Drury: Prof Emeritus, DIAS: "The Dawn of Multi-Messenger Astronomy".
 
Oct 17th –  Prof Gerry Doyle, AOP: "The Probability of a Doomsday Solar Superflare: Fact or Fiction?"
 
Oct 31st –  Dr Wes Fraser, QUB:  tbc
 
Nov 14th –  Michael O'Connell. "Amateur Observations of Meteors"
 
Nov 28th –  Prof Stephen Smartt, ARC, QUB, "Kilonovae"
 
Dec 12th –  Paul Evans "Apollo 8 – Christmas Around the Moon"
 
Jan 5th 2019 – New Year Party
 
Jan 9th – tbc
 
Jan 23rd –  Dr Neale Gibson, ARC, QUB – “Exploring Alien Worlds: How to find life in the Universe”
 
Feb 6th –  Dr Kate Maguire, ARC, QUB, "Gravitational Waves – Ripples in Spcetime"
 
Feb 20th –  Dr Norah Patten Inspire Space, Scientist-Astronaut candidate with Project PoSSUM. "From Mayo to Space"
 
Mar 6th –  Prof Peter Gallagher, (ex TCD, new head of DIAS) tbc, prob on Parker solar Probe and I-Lofar
 
Mar 20th –  tbc
 
Apr 3rd –  Prof Alan Fitzsimmons, tbc
 
Apr 17th –  AGM

Astronomy in Northern Ireland and Beyond