An exhibition program was conducted on 5th and 6th of March, 2015. Dr. Nandakumaran, Chairperson, Department of Physics inaugurated the exhibition.
The exhibition named Light: Beyond the Bulb is an open-source international exhibition program for the International Year of Light to showcase the incredible variety of light-based science being researched today across the electro-magnetic spectrum, across scientific disciplines, and across technological platforms.The glow of a candle, the rise of the Sun, and the illumination of a lamp are things that can bring comfort and warmth to our lives. Humans are, after all, drawn to light. But there is more to light, quite literally, than meets the eye. Light takes on many forms – from radio waves to microwaves to X-rays and more that are largely invisible and undetectable without modern technology. Light in all of its forms allows us to communicate, entertain, explore, and understand the world we inhabit and the Universe we live in. This exhibit shows some examples of the myriad of wonderful things that light can do, and how it plays a critical role in our lives every day.
In proclaiming an International Year focusing on the topic of light science and its applications, the United Nations has recognized the importance of raising global awareness about how light-based technologies promote sustainable development and provide solutions to global challenges in energy, education, agriculture and health. Light plays a vital role in our daily lives and is an imperative cross-cutting discipline of science in the 21st century. It has revolutionized medicine, opened up international communication via the Internet, and continues to be central to linking cultural, economic and political aspects of the global society.
To celebrate the International Year of Light, a year-long activities in 2015 is planned by the Amrita Astronomy Club.
Amrita Astronomy Club conducted a field trip to Vainu Bappu Observatory Kavalur from December 13 – 16, 2013. The main purpose of the trip was to motivate our students to pursue higher studies in Astrophysics.
VBO is the biggest of the optical astronomical observatories in Asia. Situated on the Javadu hills close to a place called Kavalur, near Jolarpetai in Tamilnadu, it is one of the field stations of Indian Institute of Astrophysics under the Department of Science and Technologies. 46 students and 6 faculty members attended the field trip. A demonstration of the Vainu Bappu Telescope was the main attraction of the trip. The students also visited the 1 meter telescope in the campus. The observatory also arranged a night sky watching session in the 6” telescope for the students.
