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ICOA-6
CONFERENCE OVERVIEW
1 The ICOA-6 Theme
Our theme for this ICOA meeting is
“Highlighting the History of Astronomy in the Asian-Pacific Region”.
In addition to targeting the ‘traditional’ ICOA nations of Asia and the Middle East, this ICOA aims to include astronomers from Australia, New Zealand, Pacific nations and those countries in North and South America.
2 Date and Location
ICOA-6 will be held between Monday 7 and Friday 11 July 2008 (inclusive) at James Cook University, in Townsville, Australia. Townsville is the second-largest city in the state of Queensland, and is located on the coast opposite the Great Barrier Reef. It is the capital of the northern half of Queensland state and enjoys a tropical climate year-round.
James Cook University is located in the southern suburbs, inland from the centre of the city and the coast. It is easily accessed by car and by bus.
3 The Conference Program
We have identified ten different themes, which are listed below. Nine of these are specialised, while the tenth is a ‘catch all’ to accommodate any papers that do not comfortably fit into themes 1-9.
1) Historical Developments in Radio Astronomy: The Last Fifty Years
2) The Emergence of Astrophysics in the Asian-Pacific Region
3) Ethnoastronomy and Archaeoastronomy
4) Applied Historical Astronomy
5) Exchange and Development of Astronomical Knowledge
6) Historical Records and Observations
7) Ancient Observatories and Early Astronomical Instrumentation
8) Calendars, Star Charts, and Chronology
9) Islamic Astronomy
10) Other Recent Research
We are happy to accept oral papers and poster papers.
In addition to the academic sessions, the conference program will include a Welcome reception on Sunday 6 July, a BBQ (8 July), the Conference Dinner and a half-day field trip (both 10 July).
4 Scientific Organising Committee
Dr Wayne ORCHISTON (Australia: Co-Chairman), Dr Tsuko NAKAMURA (Co-Chairman: Japan), Professor R.S.M. ANSARI (India), Professor John HEARNSHAW (New Zealand), Professor Bambang HIDAYAT (Indonesia), Professor Rajesh KOCHHAR (India), Professor LIU Ci-Yuan (China), Professor Kim MALVILLE (USA & Australia), Professor NHA Il-Seong (South Korea), Dr Yukio OHASHI (Japan), Professor F. RAHIMI (Iran), Professor SHI Yunli (China), Dr Irakli SIMONIA (Georgia), Dr Bruce SLEE (Australia), Professor Boonraksar SOONTHORNTHUM (Thailand), Professor Richard STEPHENSON (UK & Australia), Professor Richard STROM (The Netherlands & Australia), Professor Brian WARNER (South Africa & Australia) and Professor Richard WIELEBINSKI (Germany & Australia)
5 Local Organising Committee
Dr Wayne ORCHISTON (Chairman), Ms Leanne ASHMEAD, Mr Alex HONS, Ms Brooke TAYLOR, Dr Andrew WALSH and Professor Ian WHITTINGHAM.
6 Registration Fee
The fee of AU$250 includes the morning and afternoon teas, the conference pack (including a Conference Program and Abstract Booklet), and the Conference Proceedings. There are separate individual charges for the Welcome Reception, the field trip (lunch provided), the Conference Dinner and the BBQ, if you wish to attend any (or all) of these. Note, also, that breakfasts, lunches and dinners are not included in the registration fee.
7 Conference Proceedings
We are negotiating for Springer to publish the Proceedings, using the same attractive design as employed for the ICOA-5 (Thailand) proceedings. This will be A4 size, with numerous coloured photographs. Editors of the Proceedings are Wayne Orchiston, Tsuko Nakamura and Richard Strom.
8 Accommodation in Townsville
The Conference is on during the break between academic semesters so accommodation is available at student Halls-of-Residence on campus at James Cook University. Single rooms only are available. Accommodation options include three meals a day, bed and breakfast, or you can opt for the bed-only rate and cook your own meals in one of the communal kitchens. The Halls-of-Residence are a 5 minute walk across campus from the Conference venue.
There is also a range of luxury and budget hostel, motel and hotel accommodation available in Townsville for those who wish to live off-campus, closer to the centre of the city or the beach.
For further details and for bookings click the Accommodation icon on this web site.
9 Meals During ICOA-6
Breakfast will normally be available as part of your accommodation option regardless of where you stay. Those staying at the University’s Halls-of-Residence can also have their lunches and dinners included in their tariffs. Other ICOA-6 guests can purchase lunches and dinners at the Dining Hall at one of the halls of residence, a short walk across campus from the Conference venue.
For those who wish to eat dinner off-campus, Townsville offers excellent local and international cuisine at a wide variety of restaurants. Well-known fast-food takeaway outlets like Dominos Pizzas, Eagle Boys Pizzas, Hungry Jacks, KFC, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Sizzlers, Subway, etc. are also plentiful. Fish and chip shops are numerous, and there are excellent shops specialising in ice-cream.
10 Getting to Townsville from Overseas
International airports in Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney service Townsville with many daily flights. While Cairns is much closer to Townsville than Brisbane or Sydney, a great many more international flights go to Brisbane and Sydney, and Qantas, VirginBlue and Jetstar all offer discounted flights from both of these cities to Townsville. In contrast, Qantas has a monopoly on the Cairns-Townsville service and the fares are much higher than if you were to fly from Brisbane or Sydney to Townsville. Flights from Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney to Townsville take approximately 30 minutes, 1 hour 45 minutes and 2 hours 45 minutes, respectively.
An alternative option which allows you to view the Australian countryside is to travel from Cairns or Brisbane by train. The trip from Cairns takes about 7 hours, while the trip from Brisbane spans 2 days. Hire cars are also available at Cairns and Brisbane airports (and at Townsville airport). In Australia we drive on the left-hand side of the road.
11 Options for Accompanying Guests
Townsville is a vibrant cosmopolitan city of 175,000, with an interesting history that has links to the agricultural and mining development of northern Queensland. The city features the world-famous Strand: several kilometres of attractively-landscaped beachfront with sandy beaches (you can swim all year round here), restaurants and take-away shops. You will also find old historic buildings, picture theatres, the Reef HQ Aquarium, museums, a regional art gallery, parks and botanical gardens, and Castle Hill (with attractive views across the city and suburbs), while Townsville is the gateway to Magnetic Island, a beautiful holiday resort island 20 minutes away by ferry. Further offshore is the Great Barrier Reef (you can take a 1-day trip), while historic gold-mining towns like Charters Towers lie inland from Townsville. To the north and south of Townsville along the coast are sugar cane plantations, and 1 hour north of Townsville dense rain forest clothes the hills inland from the coast. A little further north is an area famed for its beautiful forested terrain and its numerous waterfalls. A short distance south of Townsville is Billabong Sanctuary, a zoo featuring Australian wildlife. Tourism operators in Townsville offer a wide range of options for those who wish to explore Townsville and the surrounding countryside.
By a lucky coincidence, the Australian Festival of Chamber Music will be on in Townsville during the week of the ICOA conference, with regular daytime and evening performances.
12 Townsville in July
Townsville is in the ‘dry tropics’, so the surrounding countryside is quite arid and not at all what one imagines the tropics to be like. But like elsewhere in the tropics we have a wet season (December-February) and a dry season (the rest of the year). But while the wet season is really hot, the rest of the year is pleasantly warm. So in July you can expect daytime temperatures to rise into the mid 20s (Centigrade), while at night it will rarely drop below 10 degrees. But bring a pullover or a coat just in case.
Queensland is renowned for its relaxed laid-back lifestyle, and this is reflected in the comfortable pace of life we enjoy here in Townsville and the casual clothes that people tend to wear. It is important that you bring casual clothes to wear on the fieldtrip and for the Conference Dinner. So … don’t dress up for the Dinner—the reasons for this will become obvious soon after we arrive at the surprise dinner venue!
13 Visas
All nationals except New Zealanders require a Visa or an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) to enter Australia. If you are a citizen of Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Monaco, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Republic of San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom (excluding British Overseas Nationals), USA or the Vatican City State you can apply for an ETA by going to the following web site and completing the electronic application form:
http://www.migrationexpert.com/australia/Visa/tourist_visitor_Visa_australia.asp
If you are a resident of any other country then you need to approach your nearest Australian Embassy and apply for a Visa. You should allow up to 4 weeks for this application to be processed.
14 Some Australian Basics
In Australia we have decimal currency, with 5, 10, 20 and 50 cent coins, 1 and 2 dollar coins, and $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bank notes. Banks are open weekdays, but not evenings or weekends. American Express, MasterCard and Visa credit cards are widely accepted. To check the current exchange rate from your own currency to Australian dollars consult the following web site: http://www.xe.com/ucc/ In Australia, electrical appliances run on 240 volts.
15 For Further Information
Email Wayne Orchiston on Wayne.Orchiston@jcu.edu.au, phone him on +61 7 4781 4815 (during office hours), or fax him on +61 7 4781 5880.
Drs Wayne Orchiston & Tsuko Nakamura (Joint Chairs, SOC)
