Fwd: News items
Cynthia Chen
Australia Joins Kibo-ABC
The Kibo-ABC initiative was launched on the very auspicious date of 21st November (211112). It was established to promote awareness of microgravity research; encourage collaboration between the Asia-Pacific partners; and provide access to the Japanese module “Kibo” on the International Space Station (ISS).
Members of the Space Environment Utilization Working Group (SEU WG) under the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) conceived the initiative. The founding members, represented by the following organisations, met at APRSAF-19 in Malaysia where they showcased their activities:
Australia: ANU
Indonesia: LAPAN
Japan: JAXA
Korea: KARI
Malaysia: ANGKASA
Thailand: NSTDA
Vietnam: STI
The Kibo-ABC brings together the following activities:
Try Zero-G
Try Zero G is an educational program in space, sponsored by JAXA, to perform simple, yet excellent science experiments proposed by young students from the Asia-Pacific region.
In 2012, Aki Hoshide conducted eight experiments in the Kibo module of the ISS on 16th November, just before his return to Earth, including "Weight Station", an experiment to observe the behavior of a spring balance under microgravity, proposed by Australian student Lily Thornton (12).
Lily and her mother visited Tsukuba Space Center of JAXA on 27th November 2012 where they watched the down-linked video of her experiment performed by Hoshide and learned of the phenomena in microgravity. She also toured the space center including mission control room and astronaut training facility, and learned much about the International Space Station.
Lily's mother, Elisa Thornton, said that Lily dreams of becoming a Space Robotics Engineer.
In 2013, Try Zero-G proposals will be sought from primary school students, secondary school students and teachers.
Micro-G Flights
Through the Kibo-ABC initiative, JAXA is giving
university students access to its annual Parabolic Flight Campaign in Nagoya. A
limited number of positions are available and the competition is fierce.
Space Seeds for Asian Future
The first Space Seeds for Asian Future mission was launched in 2011. Seeds from Malaysia and Thailand (chili), Indonesia (tomato), and Vietnam (salvia and antirrhinum), were launched to the ISS by the HTV2 and retrieved by the Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-134/ULF6). The seeds were then handed over to the space agency in each participating country.
The seeds helped researchers investigate the impact of micro-gravity and radiation on the seeds by observing their ability to germinate and bear fruit. The program also engaged thousands of secondary school students who grew control plants.
Preparation for the 2013 space seeds mission is already underway.
If you are interested in participating in any of the above programs, please contact Dr Naomi Mathers naomi....@anu.edu.au
2013 IAF Emerging Space Leaders Grant Programme
Students and Young Professionals between the ages of 21 and 35 on 1 January 2013 with space-related career interests are encouraged to apply for the IAF Emerging Space Leaders Grant Programme. Up to twelve students and young professionals will be selected by the IAF to participate in the 2013 programme.
The young people selected to take part in the 2013 Emerging Space Leaders Grant Programme will participate in the 64th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) scheduled to take place in Beijing, China from 23 to 27 September 2013. The individuals selected will also participate in other activities held the week prior to and during the Congress such as the UN/IAF Workshop or the Space Generation Congress (SGC) and the Cross-Cultural Presentation Workshop. Australian students will also participate in the ISEB Student Program.
Application Deadline: 1 February 2013 15:00 Paris Time
Science with the Giant Magellan Telescope Integral-Field Spectrograph
ANU is organizing the meeting "Science with the Giant Magellan Telescope Integral-Field Spectrograph" at the Carnegie Observatories, 813 Santa Barbara St., Pasadena, CA, USA on 12-13 March 2013.
The goals of the meeting are:
- to inform the US and international communities about the proposed capabilities of GMTIFS and the GMT NGSAO and LTAO systems.
- to ensure that GMTIFS serves the needs of the GMT community by articulating a broad range of science drivers for the instrument.
- to ensure that GMTIFS meets those needs by developing "telescope proposals" for these key science drivers that capture both scientific and technical requirements.
United Nations / Japan Long-term Fellowship Programme on Nano-
Satellite Technologies
The 2013 round for the United Nations/Japan Long-term Fellowship Programme on Nano-Satellite Technologies "Post-graduate study on Nano-Satellite Technologies" (PNST) is now open. This programme is offered under the framework of the Basic Space Technology Initiative (BSTI) of the United Nations Programme on Space Applications. PNST program is an expanded version of DNST "Doctorate in NanoSatellite Technologies" that was successfully launched in 2011.
There are several major changes from DNST;
1) The program has been expanded to Master course.
2) The number of recipients are 6 instead of 2 (4 for Doctor course and 2 for Master course)
3) The students will receive the Japanese government scholarship. The monthly stipend is approximately 145,000 yen per month (the exact amount is subject to change)
4) The applicant has to be born on or after April 2nd, 1978.
5) The students enroll in Space Engineering International Course at Kyushu Institute of Technology (KIT), a newly established post-graduate program dedicated to space engineering. The course language is English.
For more information visit http://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/SAP/bsti/fellowship.html
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