From: TerryMosel
aol.com
Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2004 14:59:40 EST
Subject: Lecture, Transit of Venus
Hi all,
1. The next IAA lecture will be tomorrow, Wed 18 February, at 7.30 p.m., in
Lecture Room 5, Stranmillis College, Stranmillis Road, Belfast.
Robert Hill, from Armagh Planetarium, will give a public lecture on
"Astrogazers Ireland". He will also have a full-scale model of the Beagle-2
Spacecraft, now somewhere on Mars but unfortunately not communicating with Earth!
He'll also be telling us about the latest developments regarding Beagle 2, Mars
Express, ENVISAT and SMART-1.
Anyone who has heard one of Robert's excellent & enthusiastic
presentations (or been a guinea pig for one of his demonstrations!) will know that we're
in for another treat!
Admission is free, including light refreshments, and all will be welcome.
2. Venus Transit 2004 (VT-2004) Programme
The Education and Public Relations Department of the European Southern
Observatory (ESO) has just announced the Venus Transit 2004 (VT-2004)
Programme.
On 8 June 2004, the planet Venus will pass in front of the Sun. A transit of
Venus is extremely rare - the last one occurred in 1882, 122 years ago - so
no living person has seen one. The June transit will be easily observable from
Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia so it is likely to attract the attentions
of millions of people on these continents. It offers a wonderful opportunity to
promote astronomy.
The VT-2004 programme is directed at the general public, school students and
their teachers and especially amateur astronomers. ESO invites all interested
persons to participate in the VT-2004 Observing Campaign and the VT-2004 Video
Contest. Comprehensive information is available from the website.
In Ireland the VT-2004 programme will be promoted and co-ordinated on an
all-Ireland basis by the ASGI and Armagh Planetarium. A National Steering
Committee (NSC) with its own website is being established. The full text of the ESO
Press Release is available here.
Clear Skies,
Terry Moseley
