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1. Public Lecture “Solar
Storms and Northern Lights: Observing the Sun from
Ireland”
Energy from the Sun drives our
climate, forces ever-changing weather patterns, and ultimately provides the heat
and light responsible that makes life possible on Earth. Despite this, the Sun
can have more sinister effects due to its ejection of huge clouds of hot gas
into space. While these solar storms can produce spectacular auroral
displays, they can sometimes cause dropouts in telecommunications
systems, failures of satellites, interruptions in electrical power supply
networks, and errors in GPS signals.
Dr Peter Gallagher of Trinity
College Dublin is heading the Irish section of a European-wide
telescope project called LOFAR, in which Ireland will get its own
specialised radio telescope, allowing us to see solar storms - and the rest of
the Universe - in a way never before possible.
At Astronomy Ireland's Public
Lecture on March 12th, Dr Gallagher will describe the source of solar storms,
how these can effect the technologies that we rely on as part of our every-day
lives, and how Irish scientists are using cutting-edge scientific instruments,
such as the LOFAR radio telescope, to better forecast the effects of solar
storms on Earth.
The March
Lecture, Seeing Solar Storms from Ireland, will take place at 8pm on
Monday, March 12th, in Trinity College Dublin.
A social
reception will take place after the lecture in the nearby Lombard Inn
where lecture attendees can meet Dr Gallagher and other astronomy
enthusiasts.
Details of the March
Lecture and tickets for it be found at www.astronomy.ie or by calling (01) 890
11 11.
.
2. Astronomy & Space Magazine
Offer
Get the March issue of
Astronomy & Space now for only €5. It's packed full of astronomy news from
Ireland and around the world, with feature articles about a new map of the Moon,
our place in the Milky Way, and more! That's 48 full-colour pages of Irish
astronomy for only €5, including postage.
As a special offer we also
have the January and February issues on sale for only €1 each if you order them
at the same time as the March issue!
Simply click HERE to
order, and select "One issue only" from the dropdown list. If you want the
January or February issues, just let us know how many of each you would
like in the comments box at the bottom of the form.
3. Engineers Week
Engineers Week has started and we are already making a ‘Buzz’ with our specially designed – “The Real Buzz Lightyear – The life of an Astronaut” talks for primary schools. A big thank-you to ESERO, our sponsor, who have enabled us to provide the talks FREE to 10 primary schools in Dublin this year. There are tonnes of events happening over the week and many are free to the general public, so don’t miss out on the fun. Log on to www.engineersweek.ie NOW, for further details.
5. Armagh Observatory Free Public Lectures and
Tours, Saint Patrick's Day 2012
Armagh Observatory is
presenting two free public lectures, guided tours of the Observatory Grounds and
Astropark, and an exhibition and tour of the historic main building as its
contribution to Armagh City and District’s Saint Patrick’s Day festivities on
Saturday, 17th March 2012.
The programme of fascinating
astronomical talks, "Discovering the Universe", begins with light refreshments
at 10:30am in St. Patrick’s Trian, Armagh. Two public lectures are being
provided, one on the risk to Earth posed by comet and asteroid impacts with our
planet, the other a review of efforts during the eighteenth century to measure
the size of our solar system and the role played by very rare planetary transits
across the face of our Sun. The next Transit of Venus, the last for more than a
hundred years, will be visible from Europe on 6th June this year. The free
public lectures will take place in the Rotunda Theatre, St. Patrick’s Trian,
Armagh, beginning at 11:00am, and each lasting an hour with time for questions,
ending at 1:00pm.
Everyone is welcome to these
events. Free tickets for the "Discovering the Universe" presentations are
available from Mrs Aileen McKee, Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh; Tel.:
028-3752-2928; E-mail: ambn@arm.ac.uk. No
booking is necessary to join the guided tour "Bringing Heaven Down to Earth" or
the Observatory tour and exhibition. Meet outside the Observatory at 2.30pm and
4.00pm respectively.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE
CONTACT: John McFarland at the Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh, BT61
9DG. Tel.: 028-3752-2928; FAX: 028-3752-7174 jmf@arm.ac.uk.
The world's most popular Astronomy Club
www.astronomy.ie