The Astronomical Society of South Africa is hosting their biannual symposium in a few weeks at SAAO’s headquarters in Cape Town. The symposium lasts a few days, and features a mix of professional and amateur astronomers speaking on a wide variety of topics. I enjoy these symposia a great deal, as much for the people I get to meet as for the content of the talks, but one disappointment for me as a speaker is that it is not very … Continue reading →
Did you like what I had to say? Have you spotted an error that you would like to point out? Do you simply want to comment, or let me know of something interesting? Drop a message into my mailbox and I’ll do my best to reply. If that’s too personal, I have a fan page on Facebook, and a Twitter feed as well. Regards Allen Versfeld+ The Urban Astronomer
Continue reading →I’ve mentioned the ASSA symposium already, but I have one new detail that might be of interest to readers: I will be speaking on the topic of Astronomy Online in the 3pm Outreach & Education slot on Saturday, 13 October. If you’re interested in hearing what I or any of the other speakers have to say, visit the symposium website and book your seat before the end of the month. Unlike most of the talks I announce here, there is … Continue reading →
One thing about our Solar System: It is absolutely loaded with water. Most of it is ice, and is found everywhere from comets to the rings of Saturn, the poles of Mars and the Moon, the asteroid belt, the Kuiper belt and the Oort cloud. But in recent years, we’re finding more and more water in liquid form. The latest evidence suggests that Neptune’s moon Triton (like many other moons around Jupiter and Saturn) may be hot enough at its … Continue reading →
The IAU (International Astronomical Union) recently completed their 2012 General Assembly in Beijing. I look forward to reading about these events, hoping for another exciting controversy, but I managed to miss one item on the agenda which has definite local appeal: The newly elected vice-president is a South African woman from Cape Town: Professor Renée Kraan-Korteweg, who chairs the Department of Astronomy at the University of Cape Town. Our congratulations to Prof Kraan-Korteweg! UCT dominates South African astronomy, with … Continue reading →
