Oxford Space and Astronomy Society

There are some spots still available for our solar observation session at Green Templeton College, so we are opening it up to non-GTC members! 🌞🔭

​Join us for an afternoon of stargazing using solar telescopes!
We will start with a talk by GTC Astrophysics associate Steve Prabu at 1pm in the EP Abraham Lecture Theatre, Green Templeton College. We will then head outside for solar observation with our Telescope Officers, including stargazing tips and discussion about astronomical objects.

We are delighted to share that OUSAS has been awarded funding from RS Components, for a project that has been in the works behind the scenes: the restoration of the OUSAS observatory! Swipe to see the committee hard at work 💫

We have an observatory with a 12-inch reflecting telescope which has unfortunately been out of use since 2019. We are currently in the process of restoring the telescope itself, cleaning out the building, and repairing the electrical components. The RS Student Fund will allow us to get the equipment essential for this project, including two high-torque motors and a controller, which will be used for the telescope’s new tracking system. Once the observatory is up and running again, we will be able to run more ambitious astronomy projects, viewing fainter targets than our current small telescopes can manage, and doing some astrophotography. It will be a wonderful way to get more students from across the university engaged with astronomy 🪐

This project wouldn’t be possible without the support of RS Components, and we are so excited about this fantastic opportunity!

💫 Our ever-popular Space Networking Drinks are back! Whether you’re a student, academic or industry professional, this is the perfect opportunity to connect with other space enthusiasts and have some fascinating discussions. Prior to the drinks, we’ll be hosting a lecture on space strategy by Amalie Rasmussen (see our previous post) and we’d love to see you there as well.

To sign up, please follow the link in our bio.

🗓️ THURSDAY 14TH MAY 2026
⏰ 7:30-9:00 PM
📍 ST EDMUNDS HALL BAR

🚀 Curious about the future of space exploration and technology? We’ve got just the talk for you this week! Amalie Rasmussen will be discussing humanity’s goals in space, and the strategy we need to make them a reality.

🛸 Our termly Space Networking Drinks will take place after the lecture, so why not come to both?

🗓️ 6PM, THURSDAY 14TH MAY 2026
📍 MARTIN WOOD LECTURE THEATRE, DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS

About the Speaker:
Amalie Rasmussen is a chemical engineer from Denmark, with a career spanning from building and launching student rockets during university, to working in the construction consultancy industry focusing on sustainability strategies. She then transitioned back into to the space sector with jobs at the European Space Agency in Technology Programme Management and later in Strategic Foresight & Planning, where she currently researches and assesses new and novel technologies, conducts horizon scanning and work on considering possible futures in the European space sector.

⭐️ STARGAZING MONDAYS ARE BACK ⭐️

Join us every Monday evening (weather permitting) for a stargazing session with our telescopes. It’s the perfect way to unwind at the end of the day and learn something new!

Please note that as the days get longer the sessions will be at later times - see the image for timings each week.

📍Outside the Physics Department

🚀 We’re delighted to present a lecture on Engineering at Magdrive in collaboration with !

🗓️ MONDAY 27th APRIL, 6PM
📍 MARTIN WOOD LECTURE THEATRE, DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS

No sign up required! We can’t wait to see you there 🌟

🛰️ About the Speakers:

Donya Divsalar is the Head of Systems Engineering at Magdrive US, where she leads high‑impact initiatives shaping the company’s next generation of breakthrough propulsion technologies. Known for her clarity, vision, and ability to connect teams across multiple disciplines, she sits at the centre of Magdrive’s most forward‑looking programmes.
Before joining Magdrive, Donya served as the Human Systems Integration Engineer at Airbus Defence and Space, working on human‑centred design for future commercial human spaceflight missions, including the Starlab space station programme.
Donya’s work bridges aerospace engineering, human spaceflight, entrepreneurship and programme leadership, bringing a unique perspective on how emerging technologies can push the boundaries of what is possible in space.

Mark Stokes is the cofounder and CEO of Magdrive. He’s previously worked on healthcare, robotics and aerospace projects, where he’s turned maths into code, and prototypes into products. Mark leads Magdrive’s commercial and strategic activity with a technical background in mechanical engineering, as well as leading teams for product development.

🚀 We’re starting off Trinity Term with a fascinating talk by Dr Susanne P Schwenzer, Professor of Planetary Mineralogy at The Open University. In her talk, she’ll focus on the Curiosity rover’s findings over the past 13+ years, including questions of habitability.

🗓️ TUESDAY 28th APRIL, 5PM

📍MARTIN WOOD LECTURE THEATRE, DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS

🌟 About the Speaker:
Susanne is a mineralogist by training with a Masters in Mineralogy from University of Mainz. She got her PhD researching the topic ‘Noble gases in Martian meteorites’ at Max Planck Institute, Mainz. From there, she changed subject and countries. Going back to her roots in geochemistry and mineralogy, her research topic became thermochemical modeling of mineral alteration reactions on Mars. She worked at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas, before coming to the Open University as a research fellow. Back to noble gases, she studied Ar-behaviour in rocks from the British Channel Islands - and she continued her work on Mars. She is now a Professor of Planetary Mineralogy, combining volatiles such as noble gases with mineral formation pathways and the environmental conditions that result. She is also an associate director of AstrobiologyOU and a member of the NASA Curiosity rover team.

Graham Turnock was Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency from 2017 to 2021, during which time he initiated and led the UK launch programme, negotiated Space’s Brexit and grew the size and activities of the Agency threefold.

He has recently served as a Special Advisor at the European Space Agency, Secretary General of Eurisy, a European space think tank, and is currently a visiting fellow researching the governance of space debris at All Souls’ College, Oxford.

This talk will look at what space debris is, why it is a growing problem, what is being done to address it and ask whether existing efforts go far enough.

Her Place in the Cosmos: An Interview with Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell
18:00, Tuesday 3rd March 2026
Martin Wood Lecture Theatre, Department of Physics, University of Oxford

Oxford University Space and Astronomy Society and Oxford University Physics Society are delighted to host an evening with Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell to mark International Women’s Day.

The event will take the form of a live interview, incorporating questions submitted in advance by the audience. The discussion will range from her early curiosity about the natural world to the path that led her into radio astronomy, and to the discovery of pulsars as a graduate student- one of the most significant astronomical findings of the twentieth century.

The conversation will also reflect on the structures and culture of scientific research: what it was like to build a career in physics as a woman, how recognition operates in science, the experience surrounding the Nobel Prize, and how the field has changed over time. Looking ahead, we will invite Dame Jocelyn to share her perspective on where astronomy is going and what she hopes the next generation of scientists will shape it into.

This event is open to all. Registration is required.

Please follow the link in our bio to find the registration form, along with a form for submission of questions that you would like to be asked during the interview.

🚀 Get ready to blast off into an evening of fun and networking at one of Oxford’s colleges bars during this collaboration between OUSAS and Oxford Space Network!

Both students and non-students are welcome.
Please register using the link in our bio.

Please note that no food is served at the venue, but there are plenty of options (both restaurants and street food) available nearby.

📆 February 10th 2026
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM

📍St Edmund College Bar,
St Edmund Hall
Queen’s Ln, Oxford OX1 4AR, UK