IAF Spring Meetings and SGAC Events in Paris See Accelerated Pace for Space Exploration

International Astronautical Federation hosts IAF 2017 Spring Meetings to steer future activities of the seminal civil space organization on March 21-23 in Paris, France. Along with numerous meetings of the more than 40 Administrative and Technical Committees, the Spring event is when International Program Committee selects abstracts for 68th International Astronautical Congress on September 25-29 in Adelaide, Australia. Kosmica is hosting an evening of performances, video, talks and music featuring members of the IAF Committee for the Cultural Utilization of Space on Mar 20. IAF works to advance a spacefaring world cooperating for the benefit of humanity with over 300 member agencies, companies, societies, associations and institutes across 66 countries. Current IAF President Jean-Yves Le Gall of CNES and co-chair of the Council of ESA is a qualified engineer and scientist who has devoted his entire career to European public and private space program development. On Mar 24-25 Space Generation Advisory Council and ESA host the 2nd European Space Generation Workshop at ESA Headquarters in Paris. Organized by a team of 16 including Event Manager Caroline Thro of Germany, it is designed for university students and young professionals with a passion for space. 100 delegates are expected to participate in workshops, panels and guest presentations under 4 specific topics: Space Economy, Space Accessibility, Space Diplomacy and Space Exploration. E-SGW offers a unique opportunity for rising space sector leaders to contribute their voice to regional space sector policy. (Image Credit: IAF, SGAC, ESA)

MONDAY

Mar 20 — Committee for the Cultural Utilisation of Space (ITACCUS) of International Astronautical Federation, Paris, France: KOSMICA 2017; a series of projects with an evening of performances, video, talks, music to celebrate the rise of the arts in space.

International Hubble and JWST Planning Meetings Prepare for Next-Gen Science Observations

The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), ESA and Italy Institute of Sciences – Language and Arts (IVSLA) are hosting the 5th Conference on Science with the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes in Venice, March 20-24. The Hubble Space Telescope 2.4-meter mirror and 4 main instruments are expected to operate until at least 2022, perhaps into 2030-2040. There may be a future servicing mission in 2020, proposed by Sierra Nevada Corp. using Dream Chaser. Hubble transmits ~140 gigabits of raw science data every week. The cutting-edge James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) with a segmented 6.5-meter diameter mirror is planned to launch Oct 2018 to view the most distant events and objects in the Universe and complement Hubble observations / missions. The payload module, integrated with science instruments, and the completed primary mirror are currently undergoing acoustic and extreme vibration testing to simulate launch conditions. The projected overall cost for JWST is US$10B. It is being built by 1,200+ scientists, engineers and technicians from 14 countries, and will be operated by NASA, ESA, CSA and STScI. There are 5 science and observation planning meetings for JWST being held at STScI headquarters in Baltimore MD this year, as well as one in Spain and the Netherlands. STScI is also developing science operations for Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) set to launch mid 2020s, and surveying advanced space telescope concepts for future large missions in 2030s and beyond. (Image Credit: STScI, NASA, ESA, CSA)

Mar 20-24 — Lunar and Planetary Institute, Universities Space Research Association, NASA, The Woodlands TX: 48th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC); 17,000 international attendees to discuss latest planetary science research and mission results.

Mar 20-24 — Space Telescope Science Institute, ESA, Institute of Sciences – Language and Arts (Istituto Veneto di Scienze – Lettere ed Arti (IVSLA)), Venice, Italy: Conference: Science with the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes V.

Mar 20-24 — ALMA / ESO, IAU, University of Chile, Puerto Varas, Chile: Astrochemistry VII Conference: Through the Cosmos from Galaxies to Planets.

Mar 20 — Spring / Vernal Equinox, Earth / Global: The Sun rises exactly in east traveling through sky for 12 hours, sets exactly in west; every place on Earth experiences a 12-hour day; 00:29.

Mar 20 — Moon: 3.4° N of Saturn, 00:49; at last quarter, 05:58.

Continued from…

Oct 15, 2016 – Sep 4 — Peabody Essex Museum, Salem MA: Lunar Attraction Exhibit; featuring 60 Apollo memorabilia, paintings, sculptures, photographs, books, movies, jewelry that illustrate our profound connection to the Moon.

Mar 16-24 — Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Asia Pacific Center for Theoretical Physics, INFN, Trieste, Italy: Spring School on Superstring Theory and Related Topics.

Mar 19-24 — URSI, IEEE, European Association on Antennas and Propagation, Telecom ParisTech, Paris, France: 11th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

TUESDAY

Mar 21 — Cassini, Saturn Orbit: Flyby of Janus scheduled at 44,000-km altitude, Pan at 55,000 km, Pallene at 107,000 km.