ADAS at Armagh Observatory

For the second time within a week, Armagh Observatory hosts another international astronomy meeting. This time it is a joint meeting between astronomers and atomic physicists who use the Atomic Data and Analysis Structure (ADAS) codes developed at the University of Strathclyde. Fifty-five participants are attending the meeting which began on 3rd October and ends on 5th October.

Professor Gerry Doyle, co-chair of the meeting, said: "This once again shows the high international reputation that Armagh Observatory has on the world stage".

ADAS is an interconnected set of computer codes and data collections for modelling the radiating properties of ions and atoms in plasmas. It can address plasmas ranging from the interstellar medium (the elementary particles which exist between the stars) through to the solar atmosphere and laboratory thermonuclear fusion devices to technological plasmas.

ADAS assists in the analysis and interpretation of stellar emission and supports detailed plasma models, in particular observations from the Japanese solar mission Hinode (Japanese for sunrise), which was launched from Kagoshima, Japan in September 2006. ADAS also assists in analysing observations from NASA's recently launched Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), and the Hubble Space Telescope. The geosynchronous SDO is part of NASA's Living With a Star programme and it is investigating how the Sun influences the Earth and the near-Earth environment. Its mission is to understand where the Sun's energy comes from and how it is stored and eventually released in the Sun's atmosphere.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Gerry Doyle or John McFarland at the Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh, BT61 9DG. Tel.: 028-3752-2928; FAX: 028-3752-7174; jgdarm.ac.uk; jmfarm.ac.uk.

Last Revised: 2010 March 1st