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In the last decade, the multi-sensory approach to data analysis has gained relevance. The possibility of including people with vision difficulties in the field of education and the dissemination of science is part of it. However, in the…
Over the last ten years there has been a large increase in the number of projects using sound to represent astronomical data and concepts. Motivation for these projects includes the potential to enhance scientific discovery within complex…
The SPICA mid and far-infrared telescope will address fundamental issues in our understanding of star formation and ISM physics in galaxies. A particular hallmark of SPICA is the outstanding sensitivity enabled by the cold telescope,…
In these lectures I review the present status of the so-called Standard Cosmological Model, based on the hot Big Bang Theory and the Inflationary Paradigm. I will make special emphasis on the recent developments in observational cosmology,…
Space observatories are having major impacts on our knowledge of the Universe, from the Solar neighborhood to the cosmological background, opening many new windows out of reach to ground-based observatories. Celestial objects emit all over…
Among the most fascinating and hotly-debated areas in contemporary astrophysics are the means by which planetary systems are assembled from the large rotating disks of gas and dust which attend a stellar birth. Although important work has…
The far-infrared (far-IR) spectral window plays host to a wide range of spectroscopic diagnostics with which to study planetary disk systems and exoplanets at wavelengths completely blocked by the Earth atmosphere. These include the thermal…
This project aims to attract school students and teachers from the state education system from Ca\c{c}apava do Sul - RS to Sciences and specially to Astronomy. We made astronomical observations using a Galileoscope choosing the Moon as a…
This book provides an introduction to the field of star formation at a level suitable for graduate students or advanced undergraduates in astronomy or physics. The structure of the book is as follows. The first two chapters begin with a…
Over the past decade, sky surveys such as the Sloan Digital Sky Survey have proven the power of large data sets for answering fundamental astrophysical questions. This observational progress, based on a synergy of advances in telescope…
This paper, first, presents introductory reviews of the Space Infrared Telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) mission and the SPICA Coronagraph Instrument (SCI). SPICA will realize a 3m class telescope cooled to 6K in orbit. The…
Several key motivations and perspectives of ground based gamma-ray astronomy are discussed in the context of the specifics of detection techniques and scientific topics/objectives relevant to four major energy domains -- very-low or…
Astronomy, of all the sciences, is possibly the one with the most public appeal across all age groups. This is also evidenced by the existence of a large number of planetaria and amateur astronomy societies, which is unique to the field.…
Data analysis in space sciences has been performed exclusively visually for years, despite the fact that the largest amount of data belongs to non-visible portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. This, on the one hand, limits the study of…
Optical interferometry provides us with a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of stellar structure and evolution. Through direct observation of rotationally distorted photospheres at sub-milliarcsecond scales, we are now able to…
We summarize the capabilities of the World Space Observatory (UV) Project (WSO/UV). An example of the importance of this project (with a planned launch date of 2007/8) for the study of Classical Novae is given.
Cosmology has come a long way from being based on a small number of observations to being a data-driven precision science. We discuss the questions "What is observable?", "What in the Universe is knowable?" and "What are the fundamental…
Ground-based solar observations provide key contextual data (i.e., the 'big picture') to produce a complete description of the only astrosphere we can study in situ: our Sun's heliosphere. The next decade will see the beginning of…
Astronomy is the study of the Universe and all the objects that it comprises. Our attention is therefore usually focused beyond Earth, home to the only form of life known today. However, how can we continue to explore the secrets of the…
In this paper I review the main topics on the energetic Universe that have been put forward as main science goals in the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 exercise. I discuss the study of matter under extreme conditions (both under strong gravity and…