Europlanet Workshop Series on Fireballs and their Detection
Convened by: Günter Kargl (Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences; ), Ute Amerstorfer (Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences) and Detlef Koschny (Technical University of Munich, Germany).
In cooperation with Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (RI), a series of four workshops bringing together different networks of fireball observers and machine-learning experts are being arranged over two years. This series is aimed at: i) the development of a common data format and/or common entry point to the observational data of the different fireballs networks, and ii) machine-learning science cases for meteor observations.
The number of satellites and debris in space constantly increases due to new developments in reusable launchers, small satellites and more and more private initiatives in space. Niklas Nienass recently highlighted the importance of a European Space Law evolution that ensures liability, security and sustainability in the entire European space sector. Furthermore, more actions relating to the EU Space regulation will be developed.
MEP Niklas Nienass Statement
Satellites are moving our society forward. And the more cost-efficient they become, the more sectors can benefit from their technology. For example, satellites can help optimizing processes in organic farming. But the more satellites there are, the more crowded the orbit becomes. In recent years, the number has increased rapidly. Increasingly, there is a threat of collisions with unforeseeable consequences.
Therefore, the European Union wants to set up mechanisms to make traffic in orbit safer and more sustainable. In February, the European Commission presented a concept for a common Space Traffic Management (STM).
The framework aims to set binding standards and norms for satellite operators by 2024. It also aims to use new technologies to continuously collect and analyze data on the space environment.
This week, the European Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy Committee (ITRE), of which I am a member, discussed the project.
For me, it is clear that the European Union must initiate a joint STM. However, I am also convinced that this can only be a first step. We need a European Space Law that ensures liability, security and sustainability in the entire European space sector.
I am very happy, that we have managed to include considerations for such a European regulation in the Committee’s statement on STM.
At the end of the month, I will travel to the U.S. to get first-hand insights into current developments in space. A series of high-level discussions are planned with Congress, the National Space Council, NASA, and companies such as Astroscale, Nanoracks, and SpaceX.
The future of space is currently being shaped largely in the U.S., and a future European regulation must be prepared for developments that will reach us from there in the coming years. At the same time, I am looking to promote our own positions, such as sustainability standards in orbit. In turn, we can learn from the Americans – for example, with regard to the development of a private space economy.
I want Europe to help shape the future of spaceflight – with technical innovations as well as with binding standards that ensure peace, security and sustainability in space.
Contact: Dennis Yuecel Communications Niklas Nienass MEP
4th Europlanet Early Career (EPEC) Annual Week 2022 – Call for Applications
EPEC is pleased to announce the fourth edition of its training school for early-career scientists who work in the field of planetary/space science and engineering.
Details
Dates:13-16 June 2022 Venue:Virtual Deadline for registration:31 May 2022
The school is organised by EPEC, the Europlanet Early Career (EPEC) network. One of the main objectives of EPEC is to form a strong network of young professionals by organising early-career-relevant events and by engaging in different projects through the nine EPEC Working Groups. The EPEC community aims to bring a young voice into the Europlanet Society to shape the future of planetary and space sciences and engineering. More information on EPEC can be found here.
The programme for this year’s EPEC Annual Week will cover:
Introduction, Fundings & How to… Sessions, Social Events, Mental Health, Transnational Access, EPEC Working groups, and much more!
The training school is an opportunity for the EPEC community to better get to know each other and to brainstorm how to further develop the network and the activities of its Working Groups. It is also an opportunity to enhance the interaction with members of the Europlanet Executive Board, who will be invited to give talks throughout the week. The school brings together young scientists from across the EU and beyond, and provides a networking platform where scientific discussion and collaboration can be stimulated via a series of group activities. Download more details of the week’s schedule.
Applicants must either be in their final year of an MSc course (or equivalent), be currently enrolled in a PhD program in the field of planetary/space science or have obtained their PhD qualification not earlier than 2015 (or an equivalent period allowing for parental leave, serious illness and similar delays).
Note that in order to apply to the training school you are NOT required to be a member of EPEC, although this is encouraged. If you fulfil the requirements to be a member and wish to become one, please send an email to epec.network@gmail.com, including ‘EPEC application’ in the subject.
To register for the EPEC Annual Week 2022, please complete this form by May 31st 2022.
Successful applicants will be notified via e-mail within two days after the submission deadline. In case of any queries or problems related to the application procedure, please send an email to epec.network@gmail.com, including ‘EPEC Annual Week application’ in the subject.
We look forward to seeing you at the virtual meeting!
EPEC Annual Week Organising Team
Erica Luzzi, Jacobs University Bremen (Chair) Melissa Mirino, Open University José Eduardo Silva, Observatório Astronómico de Lisboa
Past EPEC Annual Weeks
3rd EPEC Annual Week 2021, Virtual, 7-11 June 2021
On March 16, 2022, Let’s light up the skies of the world took place in the Italian Pavillion of the 2020 EXPO in Dubai. The event, organised by OAE Center Italy and INAF, was constituted by two different moments: a hands-on laboratory for the pupils of local schools, and a roundtable on the topic Astronomy for Teaching: from theory to practice, which took place both in person and in live streaming.
The team organizing the event was composed by Caterina Boccato, Stefano Sandrelli, Alessandra Zanazzi and Livia Giacomini, with the support of the staff of the Italian Pavillion, led by Lorenzo Micheli. The INAF team was also supported by Marcos Valdes, CEO of VIS (Virtual Immersions in Science), who, in the course of event, presented Moon Landing VR, a virtual-reality 360° video to live the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
In the teaching lab, called Let’s light up the skies of the world, about twenty girls from the GEMS Al Khaleej International School, an International school based in Dubai, lit up the stars with LEDs and paper circuits, inventing their own constellations and connecting them to the legends and myths of different cultures of the world. They were led, in addition to the INAF team, by two teachers – Ruba Tarabay, STEAM Coordinator and Responsible for junior secondary classes, and Mohammed Kheder, Astronomy teacher.
‘In this laboratory, we reason on the fact that constellations do not exist, because they are formed by stars which are not connected to each other,’ Alessandra Zanazzi say. ‘However, constellations are important from the practical point of view, as a reference in order to measure both time and seasons. They also have an important cultural meaning, because all peoples of the world have always observed the sky and connected the dots of the stars to form drawings of what was important for their culture. In the laboratory, we started building a paper circuit, so as to light up a constellation made of LEDs, taking inspiration from a teaching proposal developed by the INAF Play Group. Then, based on the intercultural activities “Cieli del mondo” [World Skies] who inspired several proposals of EduINAF, each participant was free to give vent to their own creativity, overlaying on “official” constellations, the ones coming from different cultural traditions, or of their own design. Here in Dubai, we saw dromedaries, butterflies, and desert oasis being drawn…’
In the second part of the morning, a roundtable took place with Markus Poessel, Responsible for the IAU-OAE Office, Stefano Sandrelli and Sara Ricciardi of the OAE Center Italy, Hamid Al-Naimiy and Ilias Fernini of SAASST (Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Sciences & Technology) and Pedro Russo of Leiden University/Ciência Viva.
Stefano Sandrelli, Director of the new OAE Center Italy says: ‘We are happy to be here today, because the theme of the Dubai EXPO is sustainability. The world can only be sustainable if it has at its heart a culture based on hospitality, on the mutual respect for differences and on true and profound dialogue. That is why the main issue of the roundtable is the codesign, which OAE Center Italy is carrying out with all the countries bordering the Mediterranean. In this project, each country proposes activities addressed to primary school pupils, which are later discussed and modified together. All this will result in a teacher training course which is going to be organized in the island of Lampedusa next summer.‘
OAE Italy center and INAF are organizing Let’s light up the skies of the world! Astronomy for Education, from theory to practice, a round table that will take place in Dubai, at the Italy Pavilion of EXPO, and streamed online for all the community.
The event will be in English, on 16 March 2022, starting at 9:45 and ending at 11:00 CET (starting at 12:45 and ending at 14:00 at Dubai time).
Participants to the round table are: Markus Poessel (Director of IAU OAE Hq); Stefano Sandrelli (Manager of IAU OAE Center Italy); Sara Ricciardi (Deputy of IAU OAE Center Italy); Hamid Al-Naimiy (President of the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space sciences, and Director General of SAASST, the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space sciences & Technology); Ilias Fernini (Deputy Director General of SAAST); Pedro Russo (Leiden University/Ciência Viva).
We warmly invite you to participate, following the streaming online or dropping in at the Italy Pavilion, if you are at Dubai on 16 March. To participate (both online or in presence) register at https://tinyurl.com/astronomy4edu
A link to follow the streaming will be sent by email after registration.
First Announcement and Call for Applications and Abstracts
10 – 12 June 2022, Prague
In cooperation with Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (RI), the British Astronomical Association, Planetum Prague, and the Czech cometary community SMPH, we are pleased to announce that a Pro-Am Workshop, bringing together professional and amateur members of the Cometary Science and Observational Community, will be held in hybrid format from 10-12 June 2022 at the Stefanik Observatory in Prague (and online). The Workshop will last for two and a half days, starting Friday morning, and will be in English.
The main aims and objectives of the workshop are:
To foster stronger working relationships and cooperation within the professional and amateur comet community, based on a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities.
To take stock of where cometary science stands post-Rosetta and how Pro-Am observations fit into potential future research.
To draw together the various strands of work currently going on within the community, particularly on coordination, techniques, standards and archiving and agree the way forward.
To consider how best to encourage, and equip, more people to become involved in the study of comets, whether directly through observation (including access to the Europlanet Telescope Network), or through analysis of online data sources.
To explore how cometary science can be used in outreach and education.
Workshop Details:
We are delighted that the face-to-face meeting will be hosted by colleagues from Czechia in the Stefanik Observatoryin Prague. Given some covid restrictions, the venue capacity will be around 40 people. We will also make all the sessions available online, and ensure that virtual attendees can also take a full part in formal and informal discussions. Sponsorship by Europlanet and BAA means that there will be no registration fee, and in person participants may apply for assistance with travel costs.
A happy memory of professional and amateur astronomers, including the much-missed Mike A’Hearn, talking all things comets at a previous Europlanet comet workshop. Credit: H Usher.
Europlanet workshop for amateur and professional astronomers. Credit: H Usher.
The workshop will be a mix of invited and contributed talks and round-table discussions, addressing the following broad topics:
Cometary Science Overview
Pro-Am campaigns
Imagining equipment, techniques and standards
Processing methodologies
Standardisation of methodologies and parameters
Archiving of data and simplifying access to datasets
Broadening participation/outreach/education
This list has been compiled based on the very helpful responses from the community to our questionnaire – thank you to everyone who took the time to submit their views.
Application Process:
We hope to be able to accommodate all those who wish to attend in person, but given the uncertainty about the number of people who may wish to do so and COVID constraints we have decided on an application process to allow us to effectively manage numbers.
If you would like to attend in person please can you complete the application form by 19 March 2022. We will notify you if your application has been successful by end March.
If you wish to attend online only, then the deadline is 13 May 2022.
The deadline for submission of an abstract for a talk is also 19 March 2022 – please complete the relevant section on the form .
Please Note: The Europlanet 2024 RI project, which received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149, closed in July 2024. This archive page describes activities funded through the Europlanet 2024 RI project.
The Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (RI) project and the Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy of Vilnius University are pleased to announce the international conference: ‘Europlanet Telescope Network Science Workshop.
The Europlanet Telescope Network, launched in 2020, is a network of small telescope facilities to support planetary science observations by professional and amateur astronomers. The Europlanet Telescope Network currently comprises 16 observatories with 46 telescopes ranging from 40 cm to 2 m in size. The network can be accessed free of charge to carry out projects on a wide variety of scientific studies about the Solar System and exoplanets, as well as related astronomical investigations.
The goal of this workshop is to encourage community-led proposals and to highlight scientific results achieved with the Europlanet Telescope Network and other medium size and small telescopes. We invite interested astronomers and amateurs to participate, to learn more about the instruments offered, their capabilities, and scientific potential. The Europlanet Telescope Network is operated by the Europlanet 2024 RI project which is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
Sessions will be distributed over three half days. They will be dedicated accordingly:
Day 1 – Solar System planets
Day 2 – Exoplanets
Day 3 – Minor Solar System Bodies
The sessions will be followed by brainstorming meetings on the Discort platform.
Registration is free of charge and with no deadline.
Participants are encouraged to submit a short abstract describing the science questions and topics they would like to address with the Europlanet Telescope Network. We anticipate a talk length of 12+3 min for contributed presentations and by 2-3 min for poster presentations.
The deadlines for abstract submissions:
Oral presentations – 7 January 2022 23:59:00 UTC (notification of acceptance by 14 January 2022)
Poster presentations – 21 January 2022 23:59:00 UTC
Virtual Fireballs Workshop #2 on Fireball Databases, Lunar Impact Flashes and Machine Learning
4 February @ 1:00 pm – 5. February @ 7:00 pm UTC+2
In cooperation with Europlanet, a series of four workshops bringing together different networks of fireballs observers as well as machine learning experts is taking place over two years. This series aims to culminate into i) the development of a common data format and/or common entry point to the observational data of the different fireballs networks, and ii) machine learning science cases for meteor observations.
The second of these workshops will take place virtually on 4-5 February 2022 and aims towards:
introduce and continue discussing the different fireballs networks, databases and data formats with a strong focus on its technical aspects;
continue discussing and exploring the possibilities of a common data format and/or a common entry point to all data, reports on recent activities;
introduce Lunar impact flashes, observation networks and software;
continue discussing and identifying machine learning science cases for fireball observations.
The workshop will also introduce and discuss Europlanet, its Virtual Observatory for planetary sciences (VESPA; vespa.obspm.fr) and the support it can offer to the fireballs community. Through EPN-TAP services, VESPA currently provides access to more than 50 decentralised databases worldwide, and it might be one option for a common entry point to the different fireballs networks that will be explored over the course of the workshop. In addition, Europlanet also provides support for the development of machine learning science cases, and the fireballs community is invited to discuss potential use cases during the second half of the first meeting. As an outcome, this workshop intends to provide an outline for the next months and to define first tasks towards the overarching meeting goals. The third workshop of the series is intended to be organized in autumn 2022.
With the theme “Beyond recovery: Towards a sustainable and innovative Europe,” the European Business Summit (EBS) 2021 is taking place on the 17th and 18th November 2021 as a hybrid event. The event will reflect on businesses’ contribution to the EU’s economic recovery plans, the Green Deal, and the post-Covid-19 roadmap.
Europlanet Satellite Workshop Series blasts off in Botswana
Press Release
A workshop that aims to kickstart the creation of a network for planetary science in Africa is being held at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) this week. Over 40 people are joining the hybrid meeting virtually, with 25 participants attending the meeting in-person in Palapye. The workshop is organised by the Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure, with funding from the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme, under the umbrella of the Europlanet Strategic Plan for Global Collaboration.
The workshop on ‘Satellites for Space Science and Technology in Africa’ brings together space technology specialists, scientists and students to discuss current topics in the rapidly developing field of space. Space has become an attractive frontier for African countries that have launched satellites based on scientific, technological or political ambitions. Satellites are used for Earth observation, communication, navigation atmospheric studies, astronomical observations and military applications, and more.
The workshop aims to support scientists and engineers at all career stages working to design satellite missions tackling scientific themes and specific target objects.
The workshop includes lectures, discussion panels and sessions for the exchange of ideas on research relating to satellites, satellite subsystems, aerospace engineering, orbital and attitude dynamics of spacecraft, and spacecraft-environment interactions.
Dr Fulvio Franchi of BIUST said: “We are happy to welcome so many participants to this workshop from across Africa and Europe. We hope that the outcomes of the workshop will lead to sustainable, mutually productive collaborations that will support space and planetary science in Africa for decades to come.”
Prof. Barbara Cavalazzi, of the University of Bologna, who leads the Global Collaboration activities for Europlanet 2024 RI said: “This Training school aims to drive revolutions in thinking, as well as science and technology, at all levels from observations, to mission concept design, to instruments, where the impact must advance our knowledge and accessibility to space at a fundamental level.”
Images
Participants at the ‘Satellites for Space and Technology in Africa’ workshop, 15-17 November 2021. Credits: F. Franchi, B. Cavalazzi
Contacts
Dr Fulvio Franchi Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) Private Mail Bag 16, Palapye Botswana franchiF@biust.ac.bw
Prof. Barbara Cavalazzi BiGeA Department University of Bologna Via Zamboni 67 Italy barbara.cavalazzi@unibo.it
About Europlanet
Since 2005, Europlanet has provided Europe’s planetary science community with a platform to exchange ideas and personnel, share research tools, data and facilities, define key science goals for the future, and engage stakeholders, policy makers and European citizens with planetary science.
The Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (RI) has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149 to provide access to state-of-the-art research facilities and a mechanism to coordinate Europe’s planetary science community. The project builds on a €2 million Framework 6 Coordination Action (EuroPlaNet), a €6 million Framework 7 Research Infrastructure (Europlanet RI) and a €10 million Horizon 2020 Research Infrastructure (Europlanet 2020 RI) funded by the European Commission.
The Europlanet Society promotes the advancement of European planetary science and related fields for the benefit of the community and is open to individual and organisational members. The Society’s aims are:
To expand and support a diverse and inclusive planetary community across Europe through the activities of its 10 Regional Hubs.
To build the profile of the sector through outreach, education and policy activities
To underpin the key role Europe plays in planetary science through developing links at a national and international level.
The World Space Forum series has become one of the global platforms for facilitating exchanges on best practices and more inter-agency collaboration in support of the internationally agreed global frameworks.
Building on the success of the conferences held in 2019 and 2020, UNOOSA invites you to register for the World Space Forum 2021 to take place fully virtually from 7 – 9 December 2021.
The World Space Forum 2021 programme will offer a platform for showcasing concrete governmental, commercial, academic and civil society actions in support of the work of the United Nations, especially in addressing the climate crisis.
The first Europlanet WorkshopSeries on Satellite for Space Science and Technology in Africa will bring together space tech specialists, scientists and students to discuss current topics in this rapidly developing space field. This workshop format is focusing on content and collaboration, and targets to create an African network in planetary science.
Europlanet WorkshopSeries aims to inspire and encourage planetary science and space technology development across borders in developed and developing countries and across the spectrum of academia, industry and civil society.
Physical participation is open to applicants from Botswana only. Virtual participation is open to all, but there will be a limit on participation and priority will be given to African participants.
The EU Commission is organising a series of short, virtual workshops about ‘science for policy ecosystems’ between September 2020 and September 2022.
Are you working at national, regional, and local level in government, parliament, academia or civil society on improving the use of scientific evidence for policy-making?
Would you like to learn more about Europe’s best practice in evidence-informed policy-making?
Would you be interested in developing your ideas and projects for stronger science for policy ecosystems with like-minded professionals from all over Europe?
This first Europlanet WorkshopSeries on Satellite for Space Science and Technology in Africa will bring together space tech specialists, scientists and students to discuss current topics in this rapidly developing space field. This workshop format is focusing on content and collaboration, and targets to create an African network in planetary science.
Europlanet WorkshopSeries aims to inspire and encourage planetary science and space technology development across borders in developed and developing countries and across the spectrum of academia, industry and civil society.
Physical participation is open to applicants from Botswana only. Virtual participation is open to all, but there will be a limit on participation and priority will be given to African participants.
Travel grants
The Europlanet WorkshopSeries links travel grants to selected applicants who intend to physically attend the workshop. However, due to Covid-19, the physical presence can only be allowed to applicants from Botswana, and can not be guaranteed due to current Covid-19 regulations.
Not just a travel grant! The Europlanet Workshop Series grants will provide opportunities for leveraging on established research networks to directly contribute to the applicant’s current research and career.
Once the UK has Associated status in Horizon Europe, UK-based entities will have equivalent participation rights to those from Member States and can lead projects as coordinators (subject to call specifications). Researchers can participate in all parts of the programme including industrial partnerships, can lead consortia and influence key collaborative projects, and can participate and benefit from programme top-ups for co-funded programmes. However, the UK has opted out of the European Innovation Council Fund, and the EC has the right to focus some initiatives on Member States only.
This is well in hand – it is part of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) signed on 23 December 2020 – so it is all in place ready to be signed. There are 18 countries associating and none of them have signed the formal agreement yet. In fact, the UK is ahead of most of the other countries as we have the terms of the agreement in place from the TCA. However, this does not limit UK applications, which can now proceed – the Association agreement just has to be in place by the time of the grant signature, which is normally about 8 months after a call deadline at the earliest. UK research agencies and government are strongly encouraging UK community to apply as it did in H2020. National Contact points in Europe Union member states are also confirming to their members that UK involvement is expected and consortia should include UK partners if they are appropriate to the project.
The List of Participating Countries in Horizon Europe, from the European Commission, lists all 18 countries for which ‘association negotiations are being processed or where association is imminent’.
The Europlanet Early Career (EPEC) network invites you to participate in the third edition of Mentoring@EPSC at the EPSC2021 virtual meeting. Mentoring@EPSC* is an activity organised by EPEC during the EPSC conference which pairs scientists in more advanced stages of their careers with early career scientists to offer the early careers a networking opportunity and a better EPSC experience.
Given the digital nature of the EPSC 2021 and that most of us are still struggling with the effects of the current pandemic, we believe that receiving guidance has become increasingly desired during these difficult times. Mentoring@EPSC aims to fulfill this need by enabling one-to-one meetings between master students, PhD candidates, postdocs and established researchers for informal conversation and exchange of experiences.
Sign up as a MENTEE: if this is your first EPSC conference and you are looking for guidance during the virtual EPSC 2021, if you are a student and are looking for an opportunity to get support in networking and career development, or if you are keen to meet an experienced researcher from a similar scientific field. We will put you in contact with a suitable Mentor to guide you during the conference.
Sign up as a MENTOR: if you are an experienced scientist who has been to numerous international conferences, feel confident navigating them and are willing to share your own experience and networking tips with an early career. You will be requested to meet virtually at least once with your Mentee during the conference.
If you are interested in a long-term mentoring program, please have a look at the Europlanet Mentorship Platform**. For more information on other resources to aid early careers, please check out the Europlanet Early Careers Training and Education Portal using the links below.
Looking forward to welcoming you to the Mentoring@EPSC,
EPEC-EPSC working group
*Mentoring@EPSC is complementary to both the Education Portal and the Europlanet Mentorship program. Mentoring@EPSC provides a short term mentoring opportunity to support early career professionals in navigating the annual EPSC conference and provides a stepping stone into the long term Europlanet Mentorship program.
**The Early Careers Training and Education Portal provides information on PhD positions, job opportunities, summer schools, and meetings relevant to early career professionals working in planetary science and related fields.
The Europlanet Mentorship program aims to help early career scientists to develop expertise, ask questions and discuss career plans with the support of more established members of the planetary community.
The Joint Research Centre (JRC), European Commission’s science and knowledge service with a mission to bring science and knowledge into EU policy making, has made available the Science for Policy Handbook. The handbook is dedicated to researchers and research organisations aiming to achieve policy impact, and provides advice on how to bring science to the attention of policymakers, not just in the EU context. The book is available on this site, which also provides useful information and material on related topics, such as Evidence-Informed Policy and Science Diplomacy.
The Europlanet 2024 RI project funds access to and use of a network of telescopes (the Europlanet Telescope Network) for the astronomical observation of Solar System objects and exoplanets. One of the objectives of this network is to train and support amateur astronomers in the observations of Solar System objects (planets, asteroids, comets…), encouraging their participation in pro-am collaborations within the scientific fields of Solar System and exoplanets research.
On May 15, 2021 (Saturday) we will organise a virtual workshop dedicated to the amateur community which aims to demonstrate the use of the telescopes within the Europlanet Telescope Network to amateur astronomers. The workshop will be held in Spanish and will use the Calar Alto 1.23m telescope for practical demonstrations showing its remote use.
Further information can be found on the dedicated workshop website.
Hydrothermal systems are crucial environments for astrobiology: they are thought to be the theatre of life’s origins, host unprecedented polyextremophilic biodiversity, and are key targets in the search for life throughout the Solar System, especially on Mars and icy moons.
Join the first EANA online school to learn about hydrothermal systems from interdisciplinary perspectives at the interfaces of geology, biology and chemistry. From May 17th–21st, 2021, there will be one or two talks each day on a particular aspect of hydrothermal systems.
The school is free of charge and is an ideal opportunity to discover or deepen your understanding of these unique environments. For more information about the lecturers and to register for the school, please visit http://www.eana-net.eu.
Virtual Fireballs Workshop #1 on Fireball Databases and Machine Learning
11 June 2021 @ 1:00 pm – 12 June 2021 @ 7:00 pm UTC+2
In cooperation with Europlanet, a series of four workshops that will bring together different networks of fireballs observers as well as machine learning experts is planned over the next two years. This series aims to culminate into i) the development of a common data format and/or common entry point to the observational data of the different fireballs networks, and ii) machine learning science cases for meteor observations.
The first of these workshops will take place virtually on 11-12 June 2021 and aims towards
introducing and discussing the different fireballs networks, databases and data formats with a strong focus on its technical aspects;
discussing and exploring the possibilities of a common data format and/or a common entry point to all data;
discussing and identifying machine learning science cases for fireball observations.
The workshop will also introduce and discuss Europlanet, its Virtual Observatory for planetary sciences (VESPA; vespa.obspm.fr) and the support it can offer to the fireballs community. Through EPN-TAP services, VESPA currently provides access to more than 50 decentralised databases worldwide, and it might be one option for a common entry point to the different fireballs networks that will be explored over the course of the workshop. In addition, Europlanet also provides support for the development of machine learning science cases, and the fireballs community is invited to discuss potential use cases during the second half of the first meeting. As an outcome, this workshop intends to provide an outline for the next months and to define first tasks towards the overarching meeting goals. The second workshop of the series is intended to be organized in autumn 2021.
The workshop is funded by Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure. Europlanet 2024 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
Review of Europlanet Virtual Industry-Policy session at EPSC 2020
This guest post by the Europlanet Industry and Policy teams summarises the Industry-Policy session that took place during EPSC2020.
A virtual Industry-Policy session was organised on 29 September 2020 as part of the Europlanet Science Congress 2020 (EPSC 2020), the largest planetary science meeting in Europe.
The session focused on:
Painting the landscape of planetary research in Europe – future missions and the role of Agencies
Industry – research collaboration for innovation: the benefits for society and growth
Funding opportunities; challenging decisions in the context of Horizon Europe in times of crisis
The essential role of space as a strategic asset for Europe
Raising awareness of the successes of European Space Programmes, in particular when it comes to inspirational science e.g. planetary sciences, and their potential for innovation
This was a high level event featuring among the main speakers MEPs, EC officials, agency representatives, SMEs and other stakeholders.
The essential role of planetary exploration and the need to maintain generous funding for space programmes was particularly highlighted by the first speaker, MEP and Vice-President of the European Parliament Dimitris Papadimoulis. In the grim landscape of significant budgetary cuts announced by the EU leaders in July 2020 on the overall budget for science and technology, including space, it is important to highlight that: “planetary and space exploration is a human endeavor that encompasses scientific, technological and economic challenges and bears long-term benefits for society. It stimulates innovation, boosts technological development, motivates young people towards highly qualified careers and may lead to unique benefits for the planet”.
Dimitris Papadimoulis MEP
Space and planetary science, besides their own merit also teach us about our own planet and how we can live here in a more sustainable fashion.
“When it comes to green and digital transition, I think the space opportunities here are key for achieving it,” said Ville Niinistö, Finish MEP and former Minister of Environment, pointing out that space technology is about exploration but also about sustainability which creates benefits. MEP Niinistö challenged planetary research officials to give public decision makers more tools in order to make better decisions and reach viable solutions.
Ville Niinistö MEP
The need to establish a unique European space strategy was raised by Niklas Nienaß, German MEP, who stressed that: “we need to take the step forward from the science fiction side that we seem to be living in at the moment to the actual science that we actually have”. It is essential for society and politicians to realise how important European space faring programs are how much strategic value is embedded in space, to achieve more funding and establish a unique European Space Strategy. And for this to happen, we need more scientists to lobby politicians, as well as raise the profile of successful EU/ESA missions so that ESA (not just NASA) receives broader society recognition. MEP Nienaß also raised the important issue of science education proposing the establishment of a European Space Academy to introduce young people in all fields concerning space faring.
Niklas Nienaß MEP
The EU space policy and funding current and future strategy was outlined by Michal Spiechowicz,of the Space Policy Department of European Commission’s DG DEFIS, who put an emphasis on the need to foster better integration with space assets, in the context of the twin transition that Europe faces. “The EU space programs support both the digital and green callenges: Copernicus to monitor and map Earth, land, seas, and atmosphere, and Galileo, to help us navigate and position. They are in fact, nothing else than global-scale, autonomous European digital infrastructures.” The third EU priority being resilience, Mr Spiechowicz mentioned that, if we work on an ambitious project of secure connectivity by satellites, within five to seven years we could have an alternative European infrastructure that would drastically enhance Europe’s resilience. He also mentioned several upcoming funding opportunities for the space industry in the post-covid context. EU members states could embed data services in their national reform, recovery and resilience programmes, this would enable them to apply for funds under EU Regional and Structural funds.
Fabio Favata from ESA highlighted Europe’s vast capabilities in science and industry. He noted ESA does regular industry days and showcases for member states, and builds up a portfolio of industrial capabilities. As an example, In Hungary, Tamas Bárczy from Admatis Ltd. who has been involved in three ESA missions, presented an association of 45 SMEs in the space sector called HUNSPACE. Fabio Favata also commented that academics shouldn’t feel reserved about speaking with industries and to initiate collaborations; there are great synergies in the skillsets repective to each domain.
Fabio Favata, ESA
Tamas Bárczy, Admatis Ltd
The virtual session featured several examples of successful Industry-Academia collaborations. Jörn Helbert, theDepartment Head of Planetary Laboratories of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), highlighted quite a few: A Berlin facility to do measurements at very high temperatures, funded by the Europlanet 2020 RI project, is an extremely valuable asset for planetary scientists to measure the hot surface of Mercury and the even hotter surface of Venus, look at volcanic surfaces on Jupiter’s moon, Io, etc. And inversely, an example of a direct spin-off from astrobiology research: a team of scientists who are studying the effects of humidity on microbes, so basically how would potential life survive on Mars, are now also working with two small SMEs, developing a trace humidity generator that will be used for industrial applications. He highlighted the two-way nature of this collaboration, with commercial customers using a university facility that contains SME-built equipment.
Jörn Helbert, DLR
In a similar manner, Giovanni Martucci (ALTEC) highlighted the value of collaborations between planetary science missions and industry, with the example of ALTEC providing operational support to ESA missions, with a co-located team at the ExoMars ROCC facility.
Giovanni Martucci (ALTEC)
Finally, Jeronimo Bernard-Salas, from one of our partner companies ACRI-ST, showed that collaborations with academic networks can lead to direct funding, with the success of the H2020 EXPLORE program selection, containing multiple Europlanet member organisations. This programme is based on collaborations with the planetary science community on exploitation of space science data including through the use of machine learning. Jeronimo also highlighted the potential for industry collaborations to valorise academic research, and open the door for new funding opportunities.
Jeronimo Bernard-Salas, ACRI-ST
A debate has followed the main deliberations, focusing on how Europe’s Planetary Exploration programme can drive innovation and competitiveness in European Research, Industry and SMEs, impact the society and inspire the next generation of Europe’s STEM workforce. The debate was moderated by Nigel Mason and it was possible for viewers to submit questions via the Q&A facility on Zoom. The questions, addressed mostly to the MEPs another policy speakers, concerned a range of subjects such as: best practices for scientists to lobby politicians and the underlying issue of lobbying time conflicting with research priorities, University Master programmes on space as an opportunity for collaboration with industry, or the organisation of large-scale space education opportunities with EU support.
The virtual event was very well attended by ~100 participants. The recording of the full session can be found here.
Europlanet 2024 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
Europlanet AISBL (Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif – 0800.634.634) is hosted by the Department of Planetary Atmospheres of the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Avenue Circulaire 3, B-1180 Brussels, Belgium.
