History of Science and Outreach Exhibitions
For the occasion of the IAU Symposium, the University of Exeter Old Library Heritage Collections are putting on display two exhibitions of special interest:
- Treasures of the Lockyer archive: from the University of Exeter Library Special Collections – sample images can be found on the history of the NLO and the journal Nature.
- Space and Astronomy and the moving image: a special exhibition from the Bill Douglas cinema museum – from the first experiments in projection to merchandise from the latest Hollywood blockbusters, how space and the planets have been depicted in popular visual culture and cinema.
These public exhibitions are a few minutes walk away from the Conference centre, and will be available for viewing at all times (8am-6pm, museum hours 10am-5pm) for several weeks together (13-31 July), including the week of the conference. They can be easily visited during lunch time (taking your packed lunch), and the curator of the Bill Douglas cinema museum will give attendees a guided tour at the lunch time break on Tuesday 18th and Thursday 20th of July (book option via Stage 3).
UK Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre
In response to the UK Government adding severe space weather to the National Risk Register in 2011, the Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre (MOSWOC) was created to provide a UK operational space weather prediction centre to help protect the country from the serious threats posed by space weather events. Scientific excursions to the UK Met Office will be planned in small groups during Tuesday and Thursday lunch breaks (packed lunches will be provided, book via Stage 3). This will include a tour of facilities and the opportunity to hear about the MOSWOC. Due to limited space, we will give priority to first-time visitors, and space will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis in a separate call (book option via Stage 3).
University of Exeter High Performance Computing
Isca is the University’s new HPC environment. It represents a £3m investment by the University, designed to serve the advanced computing requirements of all research disciplines. Isca combines a traditional HPC cluster with a virtualised cluster environment, providing a range of node types in a single machine, and as such is the first of its kind in a UK University. A guided tour of the University of Exeter High Performance Computing facilities is offered as a third choice for the lunch time break on Tuesday 18th and Thursday 20th of July (book option via Stage 3).
Norman Lockyer Observatory
The Norman Lockyer Observatory (NLO) is both a historical observatory and home to an active amateur astronomical society. It is a centre for amateur astronomy, meteorology, radio astronomy, and the promotion of science education. A visit to the NLO is included as part of the Wednesday afternoon excursion. The NLO is mainly concerned with public outreach activities, open days and group visits, but also carry out their own space weather monitoring. This includes VLF monitoring of solar flares and measuring the Earth’s magnetic field using magnetometers. A 100mm H-alpha solar telescope is available for public viewing/imaging.