Daily Image
06-08-2009
Samba kicks-off IAU carnival!
| Submitter: | Michael Garrett |
| Description: | The XXVII International Astronomical Union (IAU) General Assembly formally kicked off in Rio de Janiero earlier this week. ASTRON is well represented at the meeting, and also has a special booth set-up there, alongside similar booths for RadioNet FP7 and SKA. The opening was a colourful event with lots of music, dancing and of course samba! This is the first IAU GA meeting since Pluto was stripped of its planetary status in Prague in 2006, and re-defined as a dwarf planet. Some astronomers were unhappy about that decision, not to mention most of the general public! The opening backdrop to the formal ceremony showed the relative scale of Pluto with respect to the Earth, and similar sized objects in the solar system - a not very subtle hint about the IAU executive's opinion on the matter! |
| Copyright: | ASTRON |
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