Lecture Reports

Below you will find reports from our lectures.  Either click the title to view the report online or download a copy by clicking on the file name next to 'Download report'. Use the search box on this page to find a particular report.

The EarthCARE Mission

The talk presented to the Cirencester Science & Technology Society by Dr Nigel Wright, Recently Retired Programme Manager at Thales Alenia Space UK, on the subject of the EarthCARE mission.

ESA's EarthCARE (Cloud, Aerosol and Radiation Explorer) mission launched on 28 May 2024 is the largest and most complex Earth Explorer to date, and will advance our understanding of the role that clouds and aerosols play in reflecting incident solar radiation back into space and trapping infrared radiation emitted from Earth's surface.

EarthCARE employs high-performance lidar and radar technology that has never been flown in space before, with the objective to deliver unprecedented datasets to allow scientists to study the relationship of clouds, aerosols and radiation at accuracy levels that will significantly improve our understanding of these highly variable parameters.

Date: Wednesday, 11 Dec 2024
Dr Nigel Wright, Recently Retired Programme Manager
Thales Alenia Space UK
Dr Nessa Carey

The talk presented to the Cirencester Science & Technology Society by Dr Nessa Carey, International Director of Praxis Unico (epigenetic technology transfer), Visiting Professor at Imperial College, London, on the subject of Epigenetics, its mechanism, effects and importance.

Date: Wednesday, 13 Nov 2024
Dr Nessa Carey, International Director
Praxis Unico, Visiting Professor at Imperial College
SMR aerial

A talk presented to the Cirencester Science & Technology Society by Dr. Jason Swan and Dr. Iwan Grech of Rolls-Royce SMR, about their design of Small Module Reactor.

Date: Wednesday, 9 Oct 2024
Dr. Jason Swan and Dr. Iwan Grech
Rolls-Royce SMR
Professor Emily Rayfield
Or rather, how do  they know that?
Thanks to Jurassic Park, Walking with Dinosaurs and other computer-generated imagery, we are all familiar with dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals brought to life on our television and movie screens.  But how do scientists know anything about how dinosaurs moved, fed, the sounds they made and their colouration?
In this talk I will discuss how far palaeontologists can make statements about the behaviour of extinct animals, drawing together evidence from fossils, living animals and using X-rays and methods co-opted from engineering.
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A talk presented to the Cirencester Science & Technology Society by Professor Emily Rayfield, about the use of X-ray imaging to discover details of the lives and diets of dinosaurs.
Date: Wednesday, 11 Sep 2024
Professor Emily Rayfield, Professor of Palaeobiology
School of Earth Sciences University of Bristol
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