IAU Symposium 342

Perseus in Sicily: from black hole to cluster outskirts

First Announcement

https://www.ira.inaf.it/iaus342
https://www.facebook.com/PerseusinSicily/
https://twitter.com/iaus342

Dear colleagues,

we are happy to announce the opening of the registration for IAU Symposium #342 “Perseus in Sicily: from black hole to cluster outskirts”.

The meeting will take place in Noto (Sicily, Italy), starting on Sunday, May 13, with a welcome reception, with scientific sessions from Monday 14, till Friday 18, and a possibility for social activities on Saturday, May 19.   

IMPORTANT DATES

– 14 January:
Application for IAU travel grants
End of reduced fee registration
– 28 February:
Notification of grant allocations
Close of abstract submission
– 15 March:
End of regular registration fee
– 25 March:
Notification of abstract selection
Preliminary program
– 13 May
Welcome cocktail
– 14-18 May
Symposium

REGISTRATION FEE

There is a registration fee of 280 EUR until the regular registration deadline of March 15.  The fee is reduced to 210 EUR for early registrations (until January 14) and it becomes 350 EUR for late registrations (after March 15).  The registration fee includes a welcome cocktail on May 13, all lunches and coffee breaks, the social dinner, transportation from/to Catania International airport on the day before the start and the one after the end of the symposium, and an electronic copy of the proceedings.

INVITED SPEAKERS

Felix Aharonian
Kazunori Akiyama
Michiel Brentjens
Eugene Churazov
Francoise Combes
Denise Gabuzda
Karl Gebhardt
Gabriele Giovannini
Federica Govoni
Matteo Guainazzi
Julie Hlavacek-Larrondo
Melanie Johnston-Hollitt
Ruta Kale
Elina Lindfors*
Anna Lia Longinotti
Monika Moscibrodzka*
Monica Orienti
Chris Reynolds*
Jeremy Sanders
Debora Sijacki
Aurora Simionescu
Taka Tamura
Alexander Tchekhovskoy
Irina Zhuravleva*

* to be confirmed

IAU TRAVEL GRANTS

A generous grant from the IAU will enable us offer a number of travel grants to persons from disadvantaged regions or circumstances, as per IAU guidelines.  Everyone except invited speakers can apply, as long as they provide a contribution (following IAU rules).  Please see https://www.ira.inaf.it/iaus342/?page_id=171 for further details.

 

TRAVEL, VENUE, AND ACCOMMODATION

The nearest airport is Catania International Airport, with good connections to hubs such as Amsterdam, Munich, Rome. From Catania to Noto, it is about an hour drive on highway, and we will provide shuttle transportation free of cost for all participants on the day before and the one after the symposium.

The symposium will take place in Grand Hotel Sofia just outside historic downtown Noto. We expect that about 60 participants could be also lodged at Grand Hotel Sofia.  For other participants, we have arranged accommodation either downtown Noto in smaller hotels and b&b’s, or in the nearby village of Noto Marina (5km distance, just on the sea coast; shuttle to/from conference venue available). Please see our accommodation page for details on the reservation process.  Note that the week of the symposium is considered high season in Noto because of the “Infiorata” (see below), so even if that will not impact accommodation costs (we secured good rates), we expect that it will be very hard to find a last minute accommodation: make sure to plan your travel and book your room early!

 

THE “INFIORATA” AND OTHER SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

Each year, the third Sunday in May (the weekend following our symposium), a cascade of thousands of flowers, expertly arranged on the road, making the vision of baroque city full of scents and colours: this event is one of the best on the island of Sicily. This event attracts a large crowd, which means that depending on your taste you may want to extend your visit for a couple of days to enjoy the atmosphere of the celebration, or that you should plan to have your bags ready to leave just after the concluding remarks on Friday if you want to avoid the confusion.

In any case, it will be a special week during our meeting and we will make sure that you all will have the possibility to enjoy the many historical, cultural, natural, and scientific attractions that Sicily has to offer.  Please keep an eye on our next announcements and on our web page for the social activity information.

We look forward to meeting you all in Noto!