Annual NCAC Conference (NCAC, Warsaw)
Janusz Kałużny (NCAC, Warsaw)
Detached eclipsing binaries allow robust determination of ages and distances of globular cluster. I will present analysis of 3 such systems belonging to the nearby cluster M4. This work is based on the data collected in years 1995-2008 at LCO and CTIO observatories. I will try to explain why it took so long. At the end I will comment on recent identification of two candidates for stellar mass black holes in M22.
Rodolfo Smiljanic (NCAC, Toruń)
The Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey is a four years project that is obtaining high-quality spectroscopy of some 100 000 Milky Way stars, in the field and in open clusters. It covers all the major components of the Milky Way. This survey will provide the first homogeneous overview of the distributions of kinematics and chemical element abundances in the Galaxy. This alone will revolutionise knowledge of Galactic and stellar evolution. When combined with precision astrometry from the Gaia satellite, the survey will allow the quantification of the formation history and evolution of young, mature and ancient Galactic populations. I will describe the survey, its organization, scientific goals, operation and timescales. I will also present the first release of reduced spectra and some of the early science results.
Marek Lewandowski (Institute of Geological Sciences PAN, Warszawa)
Paleomagnetism is a branch of the Earth sciences, straddling geology and geophysics. Scientific potential of paleomagnetism gave a way to a revolution in understanding of the Earth system in the mid-50’s. The main paradigm of paleomagnetism is a geocentric axial dipole concept, a main tool being the study of the record of the Earth's magnetic field in rocks. Modern technics of identification a natural remanent magnetization of rocks enable us to conclude on continental drift, crustal blocks rotations, geomagnetic field inversion of polarity, as well as dating tectonic events, thermal history of rocks, fluids migrations through the rocks, and other applications in geosystem sciences.
