Everyone wants gamma-ray eyes!
Even before ESA`s Integral gamma-ray observatory was launched, astronomers were competing to win time to use this state-of-the-art observatory. The Integral Science Operations Centre in Noordwijk, The Netherlands, received hundreds of excellent proposals. ESA expects Integral to revolutionise the way we think about the violent Universe.... view more... (2002-10-29)
Skid Marks in the Galaxy - Astronomers localise galactic particle accelerator
Radio galaxies are amongst the most luminous celestial objects - however, they mainly emit radio waves, not light. These occur when electrically charged particles travelling at almost the speed of light are slowed down, thereby losing energy. Until recently it was not known exactly where the particles reach such high speeds. A group of scientists... view more... (2002-10-16)
Astronomers discover the wake of a planet around a nearby star
An international team of astronomers today report the discovery of a huge distorted disk of cold dust surrounding Fomalhaut - one of the brightest stars in the sky. The most likely cause of the distortion is the gravitational influence of a Saturn-like planet at a large distance from the star tugging on the disk. This provides some of the... view more... (2002-10-10)
The 2002 Nobel Prize in Physics
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Physics for 2002 with one half jointly to Raymond Davis Jr Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA, and Masatoshi Koshiba International Center for Elementary Particle Physics, University of Tokyo, Japan "for pioneering... view more... (2002-10-08)
Detector systems science and technology experts meet at University of Leicester
A prestigious international conference at the University of Leicester is set to further enhance the University’s standing as a world-leading centre in space science research. The University is hosting the Sixth International Conference on Position Sensitive Detectors (PSD6) between September 9 and September 13. These conferences were started... view more... (2002-09-04)
A sharper look at near Earth asteroid 2002 NY40
The Near Earth Asteroid 2002 NY40 was observed with the William Herschel Telescope on La Palma, Canary Islands, on the night of August 17 to 18, 2002. The asteroid was imaged just before its closest approach to Earth, using the Adaptive Optics system NAOMI. These are the first images of a Near Earth Asteroid obtained with an Adaptive Optics... view more... (2002-09-03)
Is astronomy key to scientific progress?
EMBARGOED UNTIL WEDNESDAY 7 AUGUST 2002 19:00 BST UK CONTACT - Claire Bowles, New Scientist Press Office, London: Tel: +44(0)20 7331 2751 or email claire.bowles@rbi.co.uk view more (2002-08-07)
100 Photographs in the Blink of an Eye
Scientists from the Universities of Sheffield and Southampton in collaboration with the UK Astronomy Technology Centre at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh have just opened a new window on the Universe by commissioning ULTRACAM - an ultra-fast camera which can take up to 1000 pictures a second in three different colours simultaneously. The camera,... view more... (2002-07-24)
New Director, Physics Education for the Institute of Physics
The Institute of Physics announced today, 8 July 2002, that Professor Peter Main, 48, will become Director of Physics Education, and take up his post on 1 October 2002. He succeeds Peter Cooper, who is leaving the Institute to take up the post of Executive Secretary at the London Mathematical Society. Professor Main has been Head of Physics and... view more... (2002-07-08)
Heavens open up to UK astronomers
A significant milestone for British and European science occurred today [8th July 2002] when the Council of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) met in London. At this historic meeting the UK was formally welcomed into ESO by the other nine member states. The UK, one of the leading nations in astronomical research, now joins what is probably... view more... (2002-07-08)
Media Invite - UK joins the European Southern Observatory
To mark the occasion of the UK joining the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and thereby gaining access to some of the most advanced telescope facilities in the world a press briefing will be held at the Royal Observatory Greenwich (ROG) on Monday 8th July at 3.00 p.m. This is your opportunity to hear from the key players involved from ESO, the... view more... (2002-06-26)
Media Invite - From Research to Industry - PPARC`s North West Industry Workshop
PPARC`s North West Industry Workshop Thursday 20th June - CCLRC Daresbury Laboratory, Warrington view more (2002-06-12)
Space games
Lack of awareness about UK involvement in space science and astronomy missions is widespread, but that could soon change for students in selected schools who are chosen for a test run of a new educational card game featuring scientific satellites. The game, developed by Mr David Smith, of the University of Leicester Space Research Centre, is... view more... (2002-06-11)
From Physics to Physicians
The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) and the UK Health Departments have signed a concordat to formally recognise and explore the potential for collaboration in technological areas of common interest. The Concordat, signed by Professor Ian Halliday, Chief Executive of PPARC and Professor Sir John Pattison, Director of... view more... (2002-05-22)
e-Science, fundamental physics and the GRID
Research into e-Science reached a milestone in the UK today [Thursday 25 April] when Gordon Brown, The Chancellor of the Exchequer, opened The National e-Science Centre in Scotland. The centre, run jointly by the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh, will provide a focal point for the UK`s involvement in e-Science initiatives and integrate... view more... (2002-04-25)
UK Astronomers Survey Galactic Graveyard
An unprecedented source of planetary nebulae, the disk-like relics of elderly, dying stars, has been discovered in the southern part of our Milky Way galaxy. With about 1000 planetary nebulae found so far and many more still to be discovered, the number of aged stars in their death throes revealed by the new survey is rapidly overtaking the entire... view more... (2002-04-07)
Astronomers weigh neutrinos with the universe
Neutrinos, the lightest of the known elementary particles, weigh a billionth (one part in a thousand million) of a hydrogen atom at most, and can account for no more than one-fifth of the dark matter in the Universe, according to findings by astronomers in Cambridge, who used data from the Anglo-Australian telescope 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey... view more... (2002-04-04)
Young stars in chaos
It is not only teenagers who like to congregate in intimate groups and disturb their neighbours and surroundings. As Matthew Bate (University of Exeter), will be explaining to the UK National Astronomy Meeting in Bristol on Friday 12 April, young stars also like to hang around in crowds and undergo chaotic close encounters with each other during... view more... (2002-04-04)
Mapping the cosmic web of dark matter
What is Dark Matter and where is it found? These are two of the major mysteries in current studies of the Universe. Although the nature of this invisible material remains elusive, astronomers are beginning to produce detailed maps of the Cosmos, showing its location in relation to the ordinary matter that we can see in telescopes. One of the... view more... (2002-04-03)
Physics World Digest: March 2002 edition
Special issue: women in physics When the astronomer Jocelyn Bell Burnell was a physics student at Glasgow in the 1960s, she was greeted by a barrage of wolf whistles and foot stamping every time she walked into the lecture theatre. Bell Burnell was, quite simply, the only woman in a class of 50 students. Although it is a tale that few young female... view more... (2002-03-01)
|
|
