DECEMBER 2009 - TOPICS

Short News Solar Tsunami Observed by NASA/STEREO mission International School for Young Astronomers in 2010 in Armenia December Activities for the IYA2009 Call for Ideas for experiments on the International Space Station The Galileoscope Upcoming Astronomy Meetings in Greece About this Newsletter

1. SHORT NEWS

We would like to congratulate Dr. Kosmas Gazeas, who was recently elected as a Lecturer at the Department of Physics of the University of Athens. We would like to congratulate Dr. Christos Tsagas, who has recently obtained tenure as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Physics of the University of Thessaloniki. Dr. Vassilis Charmandaris (Univ. of Crete) was recently elected as a Professor of Observational Astronomy at the Department of Physics of the University of Thessaloniki.

2. SOLAR TSUNAMI OBSERVED BY NASA/STEREO MISSION

A recent Press Release of NASA, focuses on the result of a paper by two members of HeLAS, Prof. Patsourakos (George Mason Univ. and Univ, of Ioannina), and Dr. A. Vourlidas (NRL), based on data from the STEREO mission. The twin STEREO spacecraft confirmed the reality of a tsunami like wave on the surface of the sun in February 2009 when sunspot 11012 unexpectedly erupted. The blast hurled a billion-ton cloud of gas, a coronal mass ejection (CME) into space and sent a tsunami racing along the sun's surface. STEREO recorded the wave from two positions separated by 90 degrees, giving researchers an unprecedented view of the event. The scale of the wave was staggering: It rose up higher than Earth itself and rippled out from a central point in a circular pattern millions of kilometers in circumference. For more information visit the web site: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/stereo/news/solar_tsunami.html

3. INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL FOR YOUNG ASTRONOMERS IN 2010 IN ARMENIA

An international summer school will take place on 12 September – 2 October, 2010, in Byurakan (Armenia). It is being organized jointly by the International Astronomical Union, the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory, and the Armenian Astronomical Society. The school is addressed to upper-level University students and post-graduate students and the application deadline is April 15, 2010. For more information on the application precedure, the lectures, and the topics to be covered, visit: http://www.aras.am/SS2010/ss_index.htm

4. DECEMBER ACTIVITIES FOR THE IYA2009

In this news-item we present all activities related to the International Year of Astronomy which, to our knowledge, are scheduled in Greece this last month of 2009. For December 2009 the following events are planned: 4th of December - Exposition of Astronomy inspired Artworks by V. Galinos, Thessaloniki 21st of December - Open night at the Observatory of the Univ. of Thessaloniki More details about the events mentioned above, as well as all upcoming activities for the IYA 2009 which will take place in Greece under the auspices of Hel.A.S., are available at: http://www.helas.gr/gr/iya2009.php

5. CALL OF IDEAS FOR EXPERIMENTS ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

ESA’s Directorate of Human Spaceflight, with support from the Directorate of Earth Observation Programmes, announces a Call for Ideas (CFI) to scientific institutes and industries aimed to obtain an indication of interest in research for global climate change studies using the International Space Station (ISS) in the 2012-2020 timeframe. Proposed ideas should be complementary to the on-going ESA Earth observation programmes and consistent with the research goals as described in ESA SP-1304, The Changing Earth: New Scientific Challenges for ESA’s Living Planet Programme. The letters of interest are due on 21 December 2009. For more information visit: http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/HSF_Research/SEM3VBZRA0G_0.html

6. THE GALILEOSCOPE

The Galileoscope, an International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009) Cornerstone Project of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), is a high-quality, low-cost telescope kit developed for the IYA2009 by a team of leading astronomers, optical engineers, and science educators. No matter where you live, with this easy-to-assemble, 50-mm diameter, and 25- to 50-power achromatic refractor, you can see the celestial wonders that Galileo Galilei first glimpsed 400 years ago and that still delight stargazers today. These include lunar craters and mountains, four moons circling Jupiter, the phases of Venus, Saturn's rings, and countless stars invisible to the unaided eye. As of August 10, 2009, the kit is priced at U.S. $20 each plus shipping for 1 to 99 units, or U.S. $15 each plus shipping for 100 units or more. For more information on the Galileoscope and how to purchase it visit: https://www.galileoscope.org/gs/

7. UPCOMING ASTRONOMY MEETINGS IN GREECE

The following meetings will take place in Greece. Please check the corresponding web page or contact the organizers by e-mail for more information.

High Time Resolution Astrophysics in the era of Extremely Large Telescopes Aghios Nikolaos, Crete, 5-7 May 2010 Astronomy with Megastructures Aghios Nikolaos, Crete, 10-14 May 2010 Binary Star Evolution: Mass Loss, Accretion, and Mergers Mykonos, 22-25 June 2010

8. ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER

This Newsletter was sent to all members of Hel.A.S. who have e-mail access. The next edition of the Newsletter will be mailed around January 1st 2010. Please send your announcements (e.g. appointments/departures, job openings, research opportunities, awards, conferences in Greece) or comments before December 25, 2009. If you do not wish to receive future issues of this Newsletter or the e-mail address to which it was sent is not your preferred one, please inform the Secretary of Hel.A.S.