Canada is pleased to host Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) 2008 Scientific Assembly and the COSPAR 50th Anniversary celebrations from July 13-20, 2008. The Canadian Space Agency, the National Research Council of Canada and Canadian Space Universities are co-hosting this event in Montreal, Canada.
CANEUS Chairman, Milind Pimprikar is leading the Fundraising and Sponsorship drive to raise $300,000 on behalf of the Executive Committee for this undertaking.
On October 4, 1957 the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I, whose radio signals and naked eye observations astounded researchers around the world. Although this came as a surprise, it was in fact part of the intended plan for the International Geophysical Year (IGY) that called for the launching of artificial satellites as one of its projects.
The IGY was conducted from July, 1957 to December, 1958, twenty-five years after the Second International Polar Year, and during a period of high solar activity. The scientific response to the remarkable launch of Sputnik I, followed by other launches soon after, was for the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), now the International Council for Science, to establish a Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) during an international meeting in London in 1958.
To mark this date, a 50th Anniversary Celebration will take place during COSPAR 2008 in Montréal, Canada, by adding an extra day to the normal schedule.
There will be a celebratory program on Monday, July 14, to mark this historical occasion, and recall the events of the early years. COSPAR's first Space Science Symposium was organized in Nice in January 1960 and owing to the rapid pace of space research, meetings were initially held on an annual basis. Later, the interval between Scientific Assemblies was changed to two years, making COSPAR 2008 the 37th Assembly.
CANEUS invites all members to partner in this historical event. There are several partnership opportunities including partnering for one of the “8 scientific commissions”. Please contact Fundraising and Sponsorship Committee Chair Milind Pimprikar at 514-499-3959 or mp@caneus.org
download Prospectus PDF here |
