The Sun is currently in a quiet phase ; the next activity peak is is expected to happen in about five years, but in any event, a big solar-storm can strike anytime, not just at the peak of the solar cycle. Scientists and representatives of industrial sectors affected by space weather met at the Met Office to discuss how the solar-flare forecasting system FLARECAST should be designed to best serve user needs.
Led by Nabila Aghanim, the ByoPiC project (funded by an ERC Advanced Grant) aims at solving a key issue in astrophysics and cosmology: Where are the baryons hidden today in the cosmic web?
IAS is participating to the national open lab day "Fête de la Science" in the week of October 10th. After visits by students from several schools, the laboratory will be open for the general public on Sunday October 16th, from 2 to 6PM.
In situ images of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko acquired by the 7 CIVA cameras on board Philae revealed a singular, unexpected, and very irregular landscape dominated by consolidated materials. Following a detailed study, this landing site provided a unique opportunity to constrain the past and present conditions prevailing at the surface of the comet.
A few weeks away from the end of Rosetta mission and after months of data collection and analysis, the scientific team in charge of the COSIMA instrument, a mass spectrometer on board Rosetta, proves the presence of a macromolecular organic component in cometary dust particles.
