- News

Dr. Paul Roche, the “Space Ambassador for Wales”, has been invited to help the British Council build stronger links between space scientists in the UK and Russia. Paul has been invited to attend a special symposium on black holes in late June, organised by leading Russian astrophysicist Prof Cherepaschuk, at Moscow State University. Prof Cherepaschuk also requested that Paul speak at a Space Science Café event aimed at enhancing the mobility of world-class Russian scientists and their young researchers, following a previous UK-Russia collaboration they were both involved with back in 2007. The audience will consist of a select group of space scientists and cosmonauts, and Russia’s leading science media organizations.

This earlier project, organised by the British Council and the Faulkes Telescope Project, involved 25 schools across Russia working with local universities to assist in their research. The Faulkes Telescope Project, run by astronomers in HESAS, has been working with Russian astronomers and school students since that time, and the British Council’s new programme seeks to engage even more young scientists in the country with space science research.

Earlier this year, David Willetts MP launched “UK Russia Year of Space 2011” between the Russian and UK space agencies (Roscosmos and UKSA), at a special event in Moscow. The British Council have a raft of research and educational activities happening in both the UK and Russia under this special year.

Following the Moscow symposium, Paul has been invited to the unveiling of a statue dedicated to Yuri Gagarin in London in July, and then on to the rather chillier climes of Siberia in November, to tour the Irkutsk Academic Scientific Centre and the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics, located on Lake Baikal. The Russian Academy of Sciences has asked him to spend 3 or 4 days touring the facilities and discussing future research projects with astronomers based there.

“It’s a great opportunity to work with some of Russia’s leading astronomical researchers”, says Paul, “but also to engage with schools across the country and get them working alongside students in the UK to study star systems that we think contain black holes. They are very excited about the opportunities that would be opened up by greater collaboration with UK astronomers, and access to our remotely-controlled telescope facilities”.

Further details of the UK Russia Year of Space 2011 can be found on the British Embassy website.

The image below shows Professor Cherepaschuk (far left) and Dr. Roche (2nd from the right) with members of the British Council in Russia, at a previous event in Moscow in 2007.