09 Mar NASSP Summer School

A group of 14 students, who are registered for the Honours degree course under the National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme (NASSP) at University of Cape Town, attended a Summer School on the “Introduction to Space Physics” at SANSA Space Science from 28 January – 01 February 2013. NASSP is a nation-wide collaboration between institutions to form a joint teaching initiative focusing on Astrophysics and Space Science.

The activities of the Summer School were coordinated by SANSA Researchers, Dr Shimul Maharaj and Dr Stefan Lotz. The week was filled with interesting lectures, tutorials and practical experiences describing the different areas of space physics research conducted by SANSA scientists such as Space Plasma Physics, Science in Antarctica, Geomagnetism, Ionospheric Research, Satellite Dynamics, Careers in Space Physics and GPS applications.

A few fun-filled social activities were included in the programme such as a good old South African braai, a trip to the beach and hiking in the Fernkloof Nature Reserve in Hermanus.

During the afternoons the students were involved in computer based activities relating to space physics research and took part in an online quiz. This evaluation of the students experience gave excellent insight into the impact of the Summer School. The students rated the Summer School highly and are looking forward to their next course at SANSA.