David Willetts, UK Universities and Science Minister, wants the UK to be “the best place in the world to do science” and looks to ring-fenced, albeit limited, science funding through the Research Councils plus a new type of privately funded or sponsored research university to boost scientific research and increase the impact of UK science.
]]>Avalanches of dust on the surface of Mars associated with impacts had been ascribed to seismic shaking when bodies hit the surface, but it seems that shock waves in the atmosphere before impact are the culprits.
]]>A proposal for calendar reform would bring uniformity to the months of the year, making a year of four identical three-month periods, with each date falling on the same weekday every year.
]]>The biggest maps of dark matter so far have been produced from five years of using legacy data from the Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope Lensing Survey (CFHTLenS).
]]>Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, has a barred structure in the bulge at its centre. Now careful mapping of stellar movements close to the centre suggests that the bar is rotating rather differently to the movements of the stars elsewhere in the galaxy. Stars in the bar are moving as if around a cylinder oriented roughly along a line through the Sun and the centre of the galaxy, while the rest of the galaxy spins like a pinwheel.
]]>Gravitational microlensing techniques have uncovered the first low-mass star found in a globular cluster, suggesting that previously undetectable stars may contribute to cluster masses, meaning that there is less dark matter to find.
]]>Data from NASA's Kepler mission suggest that small rocky planets may be common orbiting red dwarf stars – and because red dwarfs are common types of star, this means that rocky planets may be commonplace in the Milky Way.
]]>A survey using gravitational microlensing suggest that exoplanets are the exception rather than the rule in the Milky Way – and that small planets like Earth are more common than gas and ice giants.
]]>The Bullet Cluster famously allows mapping of the dark matter distribution during the merger of two clusters. Now a merging cluster named the Musket Ball shows a later stage in the process.
]]>Planets are not necessarily vaporized when a red giant star expands; the cores of gas giants may survive, but they would not be pleasant places to live. Data from NASA's Kepler mission has revealed two small planets orbiting a star after its red giant phase.
]]>Planets form around stars in dusty discs; the process remains uncertain. Now adaptive optics on the Subaru Telescope has revealed disruptions to a debris disc that indicate large planetary bodies – and their sizes and orbits.
]]>The largest cosmological simulation yet throws light on the formation of the first galaxies, suggesting that early supermassive black holes gained their mass from thin streams of cold gas.
]]>The first RAS Patrick Moore Medal has been awarded to Dr Becky Parker (pictured), Head of Physics at Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys in Canterbury, in recognition of her outstanding work as a teacher of astronomy.
]]>The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) and Jarnac Observatory have put online, freely available, notes from more than 16 000 observing sessions by David H Levy (pictured) chronicling more than 50 years of astronomical exploration.
]]>The Grote Reber Foundation has awarded its 2012 Gold Medal to Academician Nicolay Kardashev (above), Director of the Russian Astro Space Centre of the Lebedev Physical Institute in Moscow, for his innovative and significant contributions to radio astronomy.
]]>Jerry Nelson, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will receive the 2012 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Electrical Engineering, “for his pioneering contributions to the development of segmented-mirror telescopes”.
]]>Brian Schmidt was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2011 along with Saul Perlmutter and Adam Riess. He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and of the US National Academy of Sciences. Schmidt has made significant contributions in observational cosmology, supernovae, gamma-ray bursts and all-sky surveys. Ragbir Bhathal interviewed him in 2006 for the National Oral History Project on significant Australian Astronomers sponsored by the National Library of Australia. (Photos: Belinda Pratten)
]]>Using a new all-sky-imaging system, M Mendillo, C Barbieri, J Baumgardner, J Wroten, G Cremonese and G Umbriaco observed two distinctive types of aurora over London and western Europe on the night of 26–27 September 2011, including the first ground-based image of a stable auroral red arc over Europe.
]]>Melvin Hoare, Steve Rawlings and the CUGA consortium look forward to the potential offered by recycling the ∼30 m class antennas at Goonhilly Earth Station in Cornwall, including a new deep-space tracking facility, research and training, and the possibility of enhancing the e-MERLIN array.
]]>Kevin Kilburn reports on the discovery of a long-forgotten star atlas at Chatsworth House.
]]>This is an abbreviated version of the full table, which can be downloaded at http://www.manastro.co.uk/bevis/mas_uranographia_sets_nov13_2011.pdf
]]>Helge Kragh examines the origin of a concept that heralds the ideas of modern cosmology.
]]>meeting report Robert Fear and Robert T Wicks summarize the one-day meeting of the magnetosphere, ionosphere and solar–terrestrial physics community.
]]>Julien King outlines the content and effects of changes to the popular GCSE Astronomy qualification.
]]>David W Hughes assesses what astronomers should be collecting and why.
]]>Robert Massey reports on a survey of AuroraWatch subscribers and finds a growing interest in science in general.
]]>Each year the RAS recognizes outstanding achievement in astronomy and geophysics by the award of medals and prizes. Candidates are nominated by Fellows and the awards made by a committee of Fellows, ensuring that these scientists have earned the respect and admiration of their peers in the research community.
]]>The London Olympics and the Queen's Golden Jubilee have led the Society to change planned Saturday openings of the RAS Library in Burlington House.
]]>The following were elected Fellows of the Society on 9 December 2011:
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