Members of the public were invited to the Department on Nov. 26, 2018 to join researchers from Oxford Physics, Imperial College, Bristol University, RAL Space and the UK Space Agency, who have worked on the Mars Insight mission, to celebrate its scheduled landing on Mars.
Outreach news
14 December 2018
IF Oxford
The Department was again well represented at the annual Oxfordshire Science Festival, this year re-branded as the IF Oxford, the Oxfordshire Science and Ideas Festival. We spoke to over 1,000 people about our research at events across the city.
29 October 2018
How is physics research being used to change your life? We opened our doors as part of Oxford's science and ideas festival to showcase some of the ways research can become technology, and physics can move from the lab into your life.
15 October 2018
Students taking a break from their undergraduate laboratory experiments will notice two new canvases displayed in the foyer of the Physics Teaching Labs. These colourful canvases are inspired by the themes of space and cosmic rays, and were created in 2017 by students at Ysgol Gynradd Rhoscolin (Rhoscolin Primary School) on Anglesey, Wales working with artist Catrin Williams. Dr Karen Aplin, Head of Physics Teaching Labs 2009-2018, was a co-investigator and scientific advisor to the project.
6 September 2018
Catchy songs are great way to make a message ‘stick’, but can we use song to enthuse young people about science? What if they’re the ones writing the songs?
At three local events this summer, three researchers (Nathan Adams, Dr Neil Bowles, and Dr Donal Hill) teamed up with songwriter, Jonny Berliner, and 537 local residents to create three brand new songs based on current physics research at the University, covering distant galaxies, planetary science and particle physics.
24 July 2018
Overall there were 72 members of the Department who took part or contributed to the activities during the Outreach Development Day on 20th April 2018.
It was an opportunity for researchers who are passionate about sharing their knowledge and enthusiasm for physics outreach to share best practice with others in the Department.
The day began with a ‘Storytelling skills for scientists’ training session by Robert Holtom. At lunchtime there was a hands-on showcase of activities and demonstrations from a number of departmental outreach initiatives, including:
23 July 2018
Stargazing+ at O'Hanlon House
On Thursday 17th May a team of our researchers visited O'Hanlon House, a resettlement centre for around 66 homeless people in central Oxford, to talk about space and the Universe.
30 April 2018
On Sunday 29th April, Oxford Physics welcomed 80 girls to the department to get excited about science! Aged 11 – 14, the girls came from around Oxford and beyond, and spent the day trying their hands at STEM activities, meeting scientists and exploring science.
27 March 2018
The ATOM Festival of Science took place in Abingdon-on-Thames on March 10-18 2018. The festival, in its fifth year, celebrated Abingdon as the centre of science in Oxford and the Science Vale, including the Harwell Campus and Culham Science Centre.
The festival delivered diverse, imaginative and family-friendly events to allow local people to discover world-class science and technology taking place on their doorstep, as well as learning about the companies, organisations and scientists who make it happen.