ffiUKCAA ISSN 0972-7647 \No.62/ April 2005 Editor. T. Padmanabhan Ie-mail: [email protected]) Design, Artwork and Layout Manjiri Mahabal (e-mail: [email protected]) IAstrophysicsA Quarterly(An AutonomousBulletin ofInstitutionthe Inter-Universityofthe UniversityCentreGrantsfor AstronomyCommission)and Contents ... Reports of the Colloquia and Announcements 4,6 Past Events 1,2,3,4,5,6 Seminars 4 Visitors 7 IUCAA Preprints 4 Welcome 6 For the Younger Minds 8 National Science Day at IUCAA The experiments being explained to the visitors during the National Science Day The National Science Day was celebrated at IUCAA during science related competitions, which were designed to test February 27 -28,2005. On Sunday, February 27, the Centre the exploratory and imaginative skills of the participants, was kept open to the general public. On Monday, the 28th, were held for high school students. , (#62 April, 2005) The Quiz-winning team holding the trophy The Open House for Public Visitors were encouraged to get hands on experience of science using several "do-it-yourself" experiments set up A large number of people of all age groups and professional in the recently inaugurated Muktangan Vidnyan Shodhika, backgrounds visited IUCAA on Sunday, February 27. The which is a unique centre that facilitates school students visitors viewed several posters describing the basics of to learn about science in a free and fun atmosphere. Astronomy and Astrophysics and the scientific research These experiments were designed and presented by done at IUCAA. They interacted with IUCAA members students of Rewachand Bhojwani School. Students who described the technical details of the research [Kshitija Deshpande (Pune Institute of Engineering and activities. A kiosk was also set up where individuals Technology), Rohit Belapurkar (Maharashtra Institute of could ask questions they may have about astronomy, Technology) and Rahul Sangole (Pune Vidyarthi Griha's directly to astronomers, like Professor J.V.Narlikar. Short College of Engineering and Technology)] displayed an interactive lectures were held in different topics (including airship which they had designed and made. A computer one about career prospects in Astronomy) for those was set up by NUT, Delhi which allowed people to teach aspiring to become Astronomers. A public talk, which themselves about computers. A popular place was the explained the importance of this year's Nobel prize in IUCAA science park, where there are several interactive physics, in non-technical language, was presented in the outdoor exhibits, each one designed to explain a scientific evening. Demonstrations of how the atmosphere affects principle. astronomical observations and how R;idio Telescopes work were set up as examples of how astrophysical research is undertaken. The visitors were shown how a model of the Sky Watch Program robotic Mars explorer, Rover, could be controlled by a computer. Science documentaries on interesting scientific In the evening of Monday 28th, a sky watch programme topics were shown. Actual samples of meteorites (Le., was organized. The IUCAA's six-inch telescope was used by rocks from space which can be older than the earth) were the people to see various aspects of the night sky, including exhibited. Jupiter, Moon and the Orion Nebula. 2 KHAGOL (#62 April, 2005) Students engrossed in writing essays Results of Various Competitions Drawing Competition Honorable Mention 1st Prize: Mayura M. Datar, Jnana Probodhini Prashala, Leah Thomas, St. Joseph High School, Pashan Pune. ·2nd Prize: Nikita A. Bhate, Symbiosis Secondary Quiz Competition School. 1st Prize: 3rd Prize: Soundarya Sunder Pawar, Judson High School. Abhishek Hemantkumar Dang, Aniket Rajendra Inamdar, and Kedar Sanjay Jumde from Jnana Prabodhini Honorable Mention Navnagar Yidyalaya. Mayur Yalmik Ladkat, Shri Fattechand Jain Yidyalaya. 2nd Prize: Meeta Yishwas Kurundkar, Muktangan English School. Priya Rajendra Sidhaye, Tanay Milind Deshpande and Adwait Jayant Gandhe from Abhinava Yidyalay English Essay Competition (Marathi Medium) Medium School. 1st Prize: Snehal Nilkanth Chavan, P.E.S. Girls' High School. 3rdPrize: Swetava Tapash Ganguli, Shreyas Ganesh Patankar 2nd Prize: Yallabh Sanjay Joshi, M.S.S. High School. and Ameya Pramod Phalake from Yidya Bhavan High School. Honorable Mention Nirmitee Yinod Watve, Ahilyadevi High School for The following two schools were also qualified for the final Girls. round of the quiz competition. Kendriya Yidyalaya, Southern Command: Mayur Essay Competition (English Medium) Ghawat, Tarun and Sanjeev Suresh and 1st Prize: Prachi Ashok Joshi, Abhinava·Yidyalay English N.M.Y. High School: Chetan Ajay Doifode, Ameya Sushi! Medium School. Savare and Girish Shrinivas Yaidya. No essay was adjudged for the award of second prize. Continued on Page 4... 3 Inter-School Competitions ability to solve puzzles. The students and their teachers were introduced to the making of scientific toys with low• Several schools were invited to take part in the inter-school cost everyday materials, that would enable young minds science competitions held on Monday, February 28, at to learn excitement of scientific inquiry. IUCAA. Fifty five schools participated by sending a team of five students each. Drawing and Essay competitions were A great deal of planning and administration was necessary held with topics suitably chosen to enable the students for the smooth execution of the celebrations of the National to exhibit their scientific knowledge as well as a fertile Science Day, which was possible because of the active imagination. Based on a preliminary written quiz held in participation by all the members of IUCAA. IUCAA thanks the morning, three member teams from five schools took the volunteers from Sky Watchers Association of Pune for part in the final quiz contest. The students were tested for helping with the National Science Day celebration. their knowledge of science and technology, as well as their Seminars IUCAA Preprints 6.1.2005 Gurbax Lakhina on Relevance oj research Listed below are the IUCAA preprints released during on historical geomagnetic storms to society; 11.1.2005 January-March 2005. These can be obtained from the David Atkinson on Quantum correlations and classical Librarian, IUCAA ([email protected]). probability; 13.1.2005 Ashish Mahabal on High-redshift Amir Hajian and Tarun Souradeep, The cosmic microwave quasars and science with Palomar-quest survey; 13.1.2005 background bipolar power spectrum: Basic formalism Frank Verheest on Linear and nonlinear wave phenomena and applications, IUCAA-1/2005; T. Padmanabhan, in pair plasmas; 20.1.2005 D. Lynden-Bell on Why Holographic gravity and the surface term in the Einstein• accretion disks make jets?; 21.1.2005 E.P.J.van den Heuvel Hilbert action, IUCAA-2/2005; Tarun Souradeep and on Evolution of x-ray binaries; 24.1.2005 Banibrata Amir Hajian, Statistical isotropy of CMB anisotropy from Mukhopadhyay on Hydrodynamic induced turbulence in WMAP, IUCAA-3/2005; c.s. Stalin and R. Srianand, Long• accretion disks: study of energy growth; 27.1.2005 Sudip term optical photometric monitoring of the quasar SDSS Bhattacharyya on Surface atomic spectral linesfrom weakly J153259.96-003944.1,IUCAA-4/2005. magnetized rotating neutron stars; 28.1.2005 M. Elvis on Quasar wind: the fourth element; 28.1.2005 G. Fabbiano on Chandra observations of merging galaxies; 3.2.2005 Subhabrata Majumdar on Probing our universe with the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect; 11.2.2005 Swara Ravindranath on Colloquia Morphological evolution of galaxies: probing the assembly of the Hubble sequence; 23.2.2005 Francis Bernardeau on 5.1.2005 Abhay Ashtekar on Black holes in fundamental Multi-field inflation(s}; 24.3.2005 Emmanuel Rollinde on physics; 25.1.2005 Kishore Marathe on Chern-Simons The density structure around quasars inferred from Lyman• and string theory.14.3.2005 Anand D. Karve on Don't let alpha optical depth statistics. textbooks interfere with your education. HANDS-ON Competition On experimental basis 'HANDS-ON' competition Indian Science Congress - 2006 was conducted for school students. The emphasis in The Indian Science Congress is to be held at Hyderabad competition was figuring and doing things with hands. during January 3-7,2006. Research papers for presentation Students were asked to make scientific toys with the help of in this Science Congress are to be sent to General instructions given, for e.g., to make a box using a postcard Secretary, Indian Science Congress Association, that would have maximum volume. 14, Dr. Birsh Guha Street, Kolkata - 700 017 before August 16, 2005. The competition was held on February 22, 2005 at Pulastya. Nikhita Ghugari and Aditi Phadke of Jnana Probodhini Prashala, Pune were awarded the first prize. 4 KHAGOL (#62 April, 2005) Workshop on Observational Astronomy with Small Telescopes Participants and Lecturers of the Workshop on Observational Astronomy with Small Telescopes A five days Workshop on Observational Astronomy with Vijay Mohan took special sessions on 'Hands-on Training Small Telescopes was held at Department of Physics, YR. on Data Analysis' and Arvind Paranjpye carried on 'Hands• College, Nellore, during January 31 to February 4, 2005. on Training on Photoelectric Photometry Observations' for The workshop was inaugurated by Ajit Kembhavi. Speakers selected participants and followed by subsequent sessions and topics were as follows: on data analysis. Ajit Kembhavi (IUCAA) on Light of Stars; Vijay Mohan There were 33 registered participants,