ESA inaugurates the European Project on the Sun

On 8/9 November, at Noordwijk in the Netherlands, the European Space Agency (ESA) will inaugurate the "European Project on the Sun" (EPOS), a travelling exhibition conceived and built by European youngsters who have spent the past eight months acting as solar scientists and communication experts working on various themes relating to the Sun.

In an initiative mounted by ECSITE (European Collaborative for Science, Industry and Technology Exhibitions) with funding from the European Commission and under the supervision, coordination and co-sponsorship of ESA, five teams of youngsters (16-18 years old) from Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands were selected and coordinated by European science museums from each of their countries (Musée des Sciences et des Techniques – Parentville, B; Cité de l’Espace – Toulouse, F; Deutsches Museum – Munich, D; Fondazione IDIS – Naples, I; Foundation Noordwijk Space Expo – Noordwijk, NL).

The teams each focused on a theme related to solar research: "How does the Sun work?" (I), "The Sun as a star" (F), "Solar activity" (NL), "Observing the Sun" (D), "Humans and the Sun" (B), and built exhibition "modules" that they will present at the inauguration, in the context of European Science and Technology Week 2000 (6-10 November), promoted by the European Commission.

During the two-day event, a jury of representatives of other European science and technology museums, ESA scientists, a science journalist, and two ESA astronauts (Frank de Winne and Andre Kuipers) will judge the youngsters’ exhibition modules on the basis of their scientific correctness, their museological value and the commitment shown by the young "communication experts". The winning team will be officially announced on 9 November. The prize is a weekend at the Space Camp in Redu, Belgium. The objective of the European Project on the Sun is educational. It aims, through the direct and "fresh" involvement of youngsters, to heighten European citizens’ awareness of space research in general and the Sun’s influence on our daily lives in particular. The role of the European Space Agency as reference point in Europe for solar research has been fundamental to the project.

From ESA’s perspective, EPOS is part of this autumn’s wider communication initiative called the Solar Season, which is highlighting ESA’s Ulysses, SOHO and Cluster solar missions and their results. These missions are also being presented by ESA at the EPOS exhibition, giving an overview of current European solar science.

After its inauguration, the travelling exhibition will move through Europe for the next year, hosted in turn by the five museums that have participated in the project.

Media representatives wishing to attend the exhibition’s inauguration on 9 November are kindly requested to complete the accreditation form, please see ESA Press Release N° 71-2000.

Programme of the event - 9 November 2000

Noordwijk Space Expo, Keplerlaan 3 - Noordwijk, The Netherlands

Start of event
10:00 Welcome by ESA representative
10:10 Welcome by ECSITE representative

Youngsters’ presentations
10:20 Fondazione IDIS - Città della Scienza (I)
10:40 Musée des Sciences et des Techniques de Parentville (B)
11:00 Space Expo (NL)
11:20 Deutsche Museum (D)
11:40 Cité de l'Espace (F)

12:00 Coffee break, Jury deliberations

12:30 Jury chairman’s announcement of the winner

13:00 End of event

For more information please contact:

ESA Communication Department
Media Relations Office
Tel: +33 1 5369 7155
Fax: +33 1 5369 7690

ESA - Science Programme Communication Service
Noordwijk, The Netherlands
Tel: +31 71 565 3183
Fax: +31 71 565 4101

Useful links:

More information on the EPOS project and ESA’s “Solar Season”

More information on ESA’s Science Programme

Information on ESA in general