zum Kolloquium „Relativistic Universe“

JSPS Quarterly No. 16, Summer 2006 (34 KB)

Third Japan-Germany Colloquium Held

On 27 February through 2 March, the JSPS Bonn Office held its third in the series of Japan-Germany Colloquia, this time on the theme "Relativistic Universe." Venued in Wildbad Kreuth nestled in the mountains about 80 kilometers south of Munich, the colloquium was cosponsored by Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE) and the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Held on a selected theme each year, these colloquia allow a relatively small group of frontline Japanese and German researchers to lodge together and engage in in-depth discussions. The planning of this colloquium owes greatly to the efforts of the organizers, JSPS Bonn Office director Prof. Yasuo Tanaka and MPE director Prof. Dr. Günther Hasinger, and to the cooperation of Dr. Yoshihiro Ueda, Kyoto University, and Dr. Stefanie Komossa, MPE.

The colloquium was titled "Relativistic Universe" in celebration of the World Year of Physics, organized to salute the 100th anniversary of the quantum leap made by Albert Einstein in this field. The origins and evolution of the universe, replete with a myriad of relativistic phenomena, were addressed from various observational and theoretic angles including galactic sources, gamma-ray bursts, active galactic nuclei, clusters, and black holes. These presentations introduced the abundant research results being achieved in both countries in the subject field, including those based on the latest observation data obtained from Japan's new X-ray astronomy satellite "Suzaku." During the 2.5-day event, the snow-bound seminar house was heated by flames of enthusiasm that carried both presentations and Q&A discussions over their allotted time frames.

Afterwards, the organizers received words of praise from the participants, including many who said that the colloquium was a very meaningful event with diverse ramifications for collaborative opportunities. The participants are expected to build bridges for future scientific exchange in this field between Japan and Germany.

JSPS Bonn Office