EUROPEAN PLANETARY SCIENCE CONGRESS 2008
21-26 September 2008
Westfälische Wilhelms Universität, Schloßplatz, Münster, Germany
2ND MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT
The programme is now available for the third European Planetary Science Congress (EPSC), which will take place in Münster, Germany from Sunday 21 September to Friday 26 September 2008.
Approximately 500 planetary and space scientists will gather for EPSC 2008, which is to be hosted by the Westfälische Wilhelms Universität, Schloßplatz, Münster.
Media representatives are cordially invited to attend. The programme features 43 parallel sessions and 6 splinter meetings on research topics including missions and techniques, terrestrial planets, Solar System atmospheres and oceans, magnetospheres, small bodies and planetary moons, origins, outreach and amateur astronomy.
Talks will include an overview of MESSENGER’s first Mercury flyby by the mission’s PI, Sean Solomon. There will also be a special session on Exploring the Solar System (MT10) in tribute to Professor Elmar K Jessberger, of the Institut für Planetologie, Westfälische Wilhelms Universität, who will be retiring in October.
The ESA astronaut, Thomas Reiter, will take part in a public event on the evening of Wednesday 24 September. He will be joined for a panel debate by Gerhard Schwehm of the European Space Agency and Tilman Spohn of DLR. The panel will also include Philipp Stratmann, a Münster high-school student who is a member of the amateur society, Sternfreunde Münster, and editorial team-member of the “Andromeda” astronomy journal.
Full details of the meeting programme, sessions and abstracts can be found at: http://cosis.net/members/meetings/programme/view.php?m_id=56&p_id=340
Press room facilities will be available for the duration of the conference – from 9 am on Monday 22 September through to 3 pm on Friday 26 September. The venue has a wireless network. Media registration is free. Any bona fide media delegates can pre-register online or by e-mailing Anita Heward at anitaheward@btinternet.com . (Advance registration is not essential but encouraged).
Further information will be circulated a few weeks before the meeting, including press notices on presentations that may be of special interest (subject to embargo). During the Congress, production companies Lightcurve Films and Media Junkies will produce a narrowcast service, including video summaries of each day and broadcast quality interviews with key scientists. The material will be placed online and made available to interested press/TV channels on request.
EPSC 2008 is organised by Europlanet, the European Planetology Network in association with the European Geosciences Union.
Details of the congress can be found at the official website: http://meetings.copernicus.org/epsc2008/
FURTHER INFORMATION
EUROPLANET
EuroPlaNet co-ordinates activities in Planetary Sciences in order to achieve a long-term integration of this discipline in Europe.
The objectives are to:
1) increase the productivity of planetary projects with European investment, with emphasis on major planetary exploration missions;
2) initiate a long-term integration of the European planetary science community;
3) improve European scientific competitiveness, develop and spread expertise in this research area,
4) improve public understanding of planetary environments.
Europlanet Project website: http://europlanet.cesr.fr/
Europlanet Outreach website: http://www.europlanet-eu.org/
