This conference is proposed in the frame of the Club Sciences of the French Institute in Prague, in partnership with the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. It is open to all!
Conference and demonstrations in English, without translation.
Professor Jean Lilensten is a French astronomer and planetologist working at the Institute of Planetology and Astrophysics in Grenoble. He is a specialist in solar activity and its impact on the planets of the solar system and is also the creator of a new discipline, space weather, on which he has published a dozen books. A great populariser, Professor Lilensten devotes part of his free time to sharing knowledge. Inspired by the work of Norwegian physicist Kristian Birkeland, he has created an experimental system called the Planeterrella, which simulates the relationship between a star and a magnetised planet, in particular the formation of the polar aurora.
During the demonstrations, he and his team will show how auroras form on Earth, by activating a star, a planet. The Planeterrella's field of investigation extends to comets and other planets in the Solar System. It provides a better understanding of the impact of solar activity on our societies, and is an introduction to the new astrophysical discipline of space weather.
The Club Sciences of the French Institute in Prague aims to promote science to a wide audience through activities that make science accessible to all (science café, workshops for young people and families, conferences for the general public, etc.). The club will also be an opportunity to highlight the many research collaborations between France and the Czech Republic in a variety of fields, and to promote the work of young researchers.
