Director of Science at the European Space Agency, Prof. Carole Mundell and her senior executive team attended an event, hosted by Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), at DIAS Dunsink Observatory as part of a national visit last week.
The European Space Agency (ESA) group has been conducting a tour of all ESA member states. Ireland joined the ESA as a founding member in 1975 and has contributed to space missions along with the 21 other member states. Commenting on the event, Dr. Padraig Doolan, Irish Delegate to the ESA within Enterprise Ireland said, “The recent visit by the Director of the Science Programme of the ESA, Prof. Carole Mundell, was a landmark event for the Irish space research community. While Ireland’s success on the industry side of space is reasonably well-known, this occasion provided a platform to recognise and celebrate the substantial breadth of expertise and talent that exists among the academic community in Ireland.
“During her time here, Prof. Mundell met with multiple research groups, stakeholders and seven universities from across Ireland at the event, hosted by DIAS Dunsink Observatory. She also engaged with several Irish-based senior scientists specialising in the areas of fundamental physics, galaxies and cosmology, heliophysics, planetary science, star formation and exoplanets, and stars and stellar evolution, as well as hearing first-hand from the team behind the successful development and launch of Ireland’s first satellite, EIRSAT-1.”
Host of the event Prof. Caitriona Jackman (Senior Professor and head of the DIAS Planetary Group), noted that “the day provided an opportunity to showcase some of the highlights of Irish space science and astronomy. Irish-based scientists engage with ESA on many levels, ranging from our formal positions as named investigators on missions like Solar Orbiter and JUICE, to our service on ESA working groups and mission selection panels. Our group of senior scientists laid out our ambition for increased engagement with the future portfolio of ESA missions from technology development to science exploitation.”
DIAS involvement
As part of the event hosted at DIAS Dunsink Observatory, DIAS scientists including Prof. Caitriona Jackman, Dr. Hans Huybrighs and Dr. Charles Bowers from the DIAS Planetary Group presented examples of their work on the magnetic environments of Mercury and Jupiter. Prof. Peter Gallagher, Dr. Shane Maloney and Dr. Sophie Murray highlighted Ireland’s formal involvement in the Solar Orbiter mission STIX instrument, and their leading Space Weather forecasting work. Prof. Tom Ray, co-primary investigator on the mid-infrared instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope, provided updates on DIAS activity on the development of detectors for space, as well as looking to future missions like Ariel.
The event was attended by representatives from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment (DETE), and Enterprise Ireland (EI), including the Irish Delegation to ESA.