FEBRUARY 2012 - TOPICS

Short News Elections of Hel.A.S. IAU membership EWASS 2012 OPTICON Call for Proposals Upcoming Astronomy Meetings in Greece About this Newsletter

1. SHORT NEWS

We would like to congratulate the member of our Society Dr. Chryssa Kouveliotou (NASA/MSFC, USA), who was awarded the 2012 Heineman Prize for Astrophysics by the American Astronomical Society and American Institute of Physics. The prize was "for her extensive accomplishments and discoveries in the areas of gamma-ray bursts and their afterglows, soft gamma repeaters, and magnetars". Dr. Kouveliotou is cited in particular for her ability to create collaborations and her effectiveness and insights in using multiwavelength observations to solve astrophysical problems. In November 2011 Dr. Kouveliotou was also elected as Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. We would like to congratulate the member of our Society Prof. Yervant Terzian, Tisch Distinguished University Professor (Cornell Univ., USA), who has been named a Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow at Cornell, an award that recognizes ``tenured faculty... who, in addition to a respected scholarly career, has a sustained record of effective, inspiring, and distinguished teaching of undergraduate students and of contributions to undergraduate education ''.

2. ELECTIONS OF HEL.A.S.

The next elections of Hel.A.S. will take place in the Physics Department of the University of Athens on Friday, June the 29th, 2012 (please read the minutes of the last Council meeting, available as a PDF file). According to our constitution, all ordinary members are eligible to nominate candidates for the elections. Please refer to the invitation letter and the nomination letter available here for more information. Please also note that, if you wish to nominate a candidate for the elections, you must fill in the nomination's form and post it, by surface mail, to the Secretary of the Society by February the 29th 2012. Your letter must arrive no later than March the 15th 2012. Invitation letter: PDF file Nomination letter: PDF file

3. IAU MEMBERSHIP

Every three years, at the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), new members are accepted to the IAU. The requirement for membership is a PhD in Astronomy or a related field. Several of the members of Hel.A.S. are already members of the IAU. There is no annual fee for IAU membership. Contrary to common misconception, the annual dues of a country to the IAU are independent of the number of its citizen-members. Any member of Hel.A.S. with a PhD, who wishes to become a member of the IAU, should contact the president of the Greek National Committee for Astronomy (Nick Kylafis, kylafis@physics.uoc.gr) by the 15th of February 2012.

4. EWASS 2012

The European Week of Astronomy and Space Science 2012 (EWASS 2012) organized by the Italian Astronomical Society (SAIt) on behalf of the European Astronomical Society (EAS) will take place in Rome, Italy, at the Pontificia Università Lateranense, during the week of July 1-6, 2012. EWASS 2012 will host 11 plenary talks, 10 Symposia, and 11 Special Sessions on various aspects of modern astronomy. The conference will address a wide range of topics in Astronomy and Space Sciences and related technologies, that are of interest to the European astronomical community. The EAS Council meeting, Tycho Brahe Prize and Woltjer Lecture will also take place during EWASS 2012. The early registration at reduced rate is February 15, 2012. Members of the EAS are also eligible to apply for some funding to attend the meeting. For more information please visit: http://www.ifsi-roma.inaf.it/ewass2012/

5. OPTICON CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The call for observing time at night time telescopes supported by the OPTICON Trans-National Access is now open with a deadline of 1200 UT on 29 February 2012. The semester is centred on August 2012 to January 2013, but there are small variations at some telescopes to accommodate their normal semesters and maximise scheduling flexibility. For more information please visit: http://www.astro-opticon.org/fp7/tna/opticon_call_new.html

6. UPCOMING ASTRONOMY MEETINGS IN GREECE

The Labyrinth of Star Formation Crete, 18 – 22 June 2012 NEB 15: Recent Developments in Gravity Crete, 20 – 23 June 2012 BUKS2012: MHD Waves and Seismology of the Solar Atmosphere Crete, 4 – 7 July 2012 Half a Century of X-ray Astronomy Mykonos, 17 – 21 September 2012

7. 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 March 1st, 2012. Please send your announcements (e.g. appointments/departures, job openings, research opportunities, awards, conferences in Greece) or comments before February 25, 2012. 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.