National Astronomy Meeting 2021 - Hosted by the University of Bath

Following a year’s hiatus due to the pandemic in 2020, the Royal Astronomical Society resumed plans to host the National Astronomy meeting 2021 as a virtual conference for the first time.

The meeting brought together members of the UK’s astronomy/astrophysics, UK Solar Physics (UKSP), and Magnetosphere Ionosphere and Solar-Terrestrial (MIST) communities, and presented a wide-reaching programme to reflect the diversity and interests of these communities.

You can find an overview of the programme, and further details on the event’s parallel sessions and special lunches/discussion sessions. I was asked to cover three, three hour sessions. The first and second sessions exploring the incredible work being undertaken in the field of Transient Astrophysics - visualising a highlight from each researcher’s talk.

And a final session ‘Sketching Stars’ explored how the artist and the astronomer can advance science, through a number of collaborative public engagement and outreach projects.