One of the world’s leading planetary scientists, Dr Paul Schenk, will hold a public lecture in the Isle of Man next month.
Dr Schenk is a staff Scientist at the NASA Lunar and Planetary Institute and an expert on the topography and geology of the icy satellites of the outer planets. His talk, Exploring of the Solar System: 50 Years of Discovery, will include details of a planned mission to send a probe to Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, where research suggests there is enough oxygen to support life.
One of the proposals to explore Europa is to send a probe which, upon landing, will penetrate where the ice shell is weakest, in craters caused by impact from meteoric impacts. One of the craters identified for potential landing and penetration on the mission is 23km in diameter and goes by the name of… Manannan.
Dr Schenk’s talk, which is being held in association with the Isle of Man Astronomical Society and ManSat, takes place in the Manx Museum Lecture Theatre on Friday, June 29, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are £5 and can be purchased from Corlett’s the Jewellers in Castle Street, Douglas, or on the night on the door, subject to availability.
IOM Astronomical Society Chairman Howard Parkin explained: ‘The ocean on Jupiter’s moon Europa is thought to contain vast amounts of water and research suggests that there may be plenty of oxygen available in that ocean to support life, possibly even complex, animal-like organisms with greater oxygen demands than microorganisms. It’s a fascinating subject in itself, but given that one of the craters that could be used to access the moon is called Manannan, it’s fitting to have this lecture in the Isle of Man.
‘With the Island’s ever-increasing role in space commerce, to have someone of Dr Schenk’s stature here is a great privilege for the Isle of Man and we are delighted that he is coming for a few days.’
Dr Schenk has used images from interplanetary missions such as the Voyager, Galileo and Cassini missions to map the topography and geology of the outer planet moons, and he has also worked extensively on Mars and the Earth’s Moon. His visit to the Island is being sponsored by ManSat, which works in partnership with the Isle of Man Government, carrying out satellite filing on behalf of the Isle of Man Communications Commission.
Chief Executive Chris Stott said: ‘Dr Schenk is considered to be one of the world’s foremost planetary scientists, and we’ve been talking to him for a few years now in the hope that he could find a gap in his schedule to bring him to the Isle of Man. It should be a superb lecture and one which I’m sure anyone with an interest in astronomy and space will be keen to attend.’
For more details about the Isle of Man Astronomical Society, visit: http://www.iomastronomy.org/.
