TWINKLING OF THE STARS: NEW OPPORTUNITIES CLASSROOM ON FLIGHT TO ANTARCTICA
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Volume 54, Number 3, MAy-jun 2017 TWINKLING OF CLASSROOM ON THE STARS: NEW FLIGHT TO OPPORTUNITIES ANTARCTICA BUREAU OF SCIENCE MEETS METEOROLOGY'S SPACE PARLIAMENT 2017 WEATHER SERVICES
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CONTENTS Australian Institute of Physics
Promoting the role of physics in research, education, industry and the community
78 Editorial AIP contact details:
Early days of Aust. Phys PO Box 546, East Melbourne, Vic 3002
Volume 54, Number 3, MAy-jun 2017
Phone: 03 9895 4477
Fax: 03 9898 0249
79 President’s Column email: aip@aip.org.au
Publish or perish
AIP website: www.aip.org.au
80 Letter to the editor AIP Executive
President Prof Andrew Peele
andrew.peele@synchrotron.org.au
80 News & Comment Vice President A/Prof Jodie Bradby
TWINKLING OF CLASSROOM ON
THE STARS: NEW FLIGHT TO jodie.bradby@anu.edu.au
84 Open letter from Science OPPORTUNITIES ANTARCTICA
Secretary Dr Kirrily Rule
& Technology Australia
BUREAU OF SCIENCE MEETS
METEOROLOGY'S SPACE PARLIAMENT 2017 Kirrily.Rule@ansto.gov.au
WEATHER SERVICES
Treasurer Dr Judith Pollard
judith.pollard@adelaide.edu.au
85 Twinkling of the stars – Cover Registrar Prof Ian McArthur
new opportunities in Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) ian.mcarthur@uwa.edu.au
a very old field of study extreme ultraviolet image (17.1 nm) of Immediate Past President Prof Warrick Couch
cascading loops spiralling above an active
Laurence Campbell wcouch@aao.gov.au
region following a solar flare eruption on
Special Projects Officers
15 January 2012. These magnetic loop
Dr Olivia Samardzic
90 The Australian Bureau structures are made of superheated plasma.
olivia.samardzic@dsto.defence.gov.au
of Meteorology Space Just one of these loops is the size of several
Earths. Image provided courtesy of NASA/ AIP ACT Branch
Weather Services Chair Dr Michael Hush
SDO and the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly
Murray Parkinson (AIA) science team. m.hush@adfa.edu.au
Secretary Dr Wayne Hutchison
96 Conferences w.hutchison@adfa.edu.au
AIP NSW Branch
97 Classroom Antarctica: Chair Dr Matthew Arnold
teaching physics on a Matthew.Arnold-1@uts.edu.au
Secretary Dr Frederick Osman
plane on the way to fred_osman@exemail.com.au
Antarctica
AIP QLD Branch
David Gozzard
Chair Dr. Joanna Turner
Joanna.Turner@usq.edu.au
100 2017 CSIRO Alumni Secretary Dr Till Weinhold
Scholarship t.weinhold@uq.edu.au
AIP SA Branch
101 Science Meets Parliament Chair Andrew Mackinnon
andrew.mackinnon@adelaide.edu.au
2017: a personal account Secretary Dr Laurence Campbell
Martin White laurence.campbell@flinders.edu.au
AIP TAS Branch
103 Book Review Chair Dr Stanislav Shabala
David Karoly reviews stanislav.shabala@utas.edu.au
Secretary Dr Stephen Newbery
Physics of Radiation and Climate
Stephen.Newbery@dhhs.tas.gov.au
by Michael A. Box and Gail P. Box
AIP VIC Branch
Chair Dr John Thornton
104 Samplings john.thornton@dsto.defence.gov.au
Physics news that caught the eye Secretary Nicholas Anthony
of the editor N.Anthony@latrobe.edu.au
AIP WA Branch
108 Product News Chair John Chapman
New products from Coherent john@thediamondpages.com
Secretary Andrea F. Biondo
Scientific, Lastek, Warsash Scientific
andrea.b@galacticscientific.com
& Zurich Instruments.
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 77
EDITORIAL
Early days of Aust. Phys.
The scanning of old issues is proceeding
A Publication of the Australian Institute of Physics slowly but there is an intention to
complete the task in a finite time! When
EDITOR
the AIP’s members’ journal began
A/Prof Brian James
aip_editor@aip.org.au publication in 1964 it was called The
brian.james@sydney.edu.au Australian Physicist with subsequent
BOOK REVIEWS EDITOR (ACTING) name changes to The Australian and
A/Prof Brian James New Zealand Physicist in 1991, The
aip_editor@aip.org.au
Physicist in 1999, and to its present title
brian.james@sydney.edu.au
in 2005. Looking at the early issues
EDITORIAL BOARD
evokes an earlier era in Australian physics
A/Prof Brian James (Chair)
Dr J. Holdsworth (I was an undergraduate at the time of
Prof H. A. Bachor the first issue!). As current editor I shudder at the monthly publication
Prof H. Rubinsztein-Dunlop
schedule of the early years. There were more advertisements from a greater
Prof S. Tingay
diversity of suppliers, including Australian manufacturers of scientific and
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
electronic equipment. A greater frequency of publication is indicative of
Dr Laurence Campbell laurence.campbell@flinders.edu.au
A/Prof Bruce Hartley B.Hartley@curtin.edu.au the need to fulfil the role of timely information that is now filled by our
Dr John Humble John.Humble@utas.edu.au monthly email newsletter. It is salutary to see that that many of the issues
Prof Christian Langton christian.langton@qut.edu.au
of concern, remain contemporary concerns!
Dr Frederick Osman fred_osman@exemail.com.au
In his article Twinkling of the stars – new opportunities in a very old field of
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Articles for submission to Australian Physics should be sent by email to the study, Laurence Campbell (Flinders University) describes the phenomenon
Editor. The text should be sent as a Word file and authors are advised to of star twinkling and the observations that can be made by eye and with a
consult a recent issue as a guide to style. Images should not be embedded sensitive digital camera.
in the document, but should be sent as high resolution attachments in JPG
or PNG format. Authors should also send a short bio and a recent photo. The
The spectacular cover images relates to the second article, The Australian
Editor reserves the right to edit articles based on space requirements and
editorial content. Bureau of Meteorology Space Weather Services, by Murray Parkinson
(Australian Bureau of Meteorology). We may all be very familiar with
ADVERTISING
Enquiries should be sent to the Editor. the Bureau’s role in making weather observations, maintaining historical
Published six times a year.
records and, most importantly for our daily activities, forecasting weather.
© 2017 Australian Institute of Physics Inc. Unless otherwise stated, all written Less familiar, however, will be the Bureau’s space weather activities. In his
content in Australian Physics magazine is subject to copyright of the AIP and article Murray describes the phenomenon of space weather, it’s affect on
must not be reproduced wholly or in part without written permission.
the Earth and the efforts underway to improve predictive capability.
The statements made and the opinions expressed in Australian Physics do
From time to time we publish articles on physics education topics.
not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Institute of Physics or its
Council or Committees. The article, Classroom Antarctica: teaching physics on a plane on the way
Print Post approved PP 224960 / 00008
to Antarctica, by David Gozzard (University of Western Australia) is of
ISSN 1837-5375 this genre, but with a difference. It describes a flight over Antarctica as a
PRODUCTION & PRINTING venue for teaching high school students about the Earth’s magnetic field
Pinnacle Print Group (including observations) and comic rays.
1/87 Newlands Road, Reservoir VIC 3073
www.pinnacleprintgroup.com.au Finally a short item by Martin White (University of Adelaide), Science
Ph: 8480 3333 Fax: 8480 3344 Meets Parliament 2017 – a personal account, describes his participation
in this annual event organized by Science and Technology Australia,
involving information sessions on governmental procedures as well as
opportunities to talk to individual politicians.
Brian James
78 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
Publish or Perish
As many of our readers will know, the responsibilities and for those with the
Australian Institute of Physics circu- calling to help promote and strength-
lates a weekly bulletin. The bulletin en Australian Physics, please contact
goes to an extensive email list – not or provide your expression of interest
just AIP members – as we like to to myself (aip_president@aip.org.au)
share the joys of physics with poten- and/or to Brian (brian.james@syd-
tial new members. In an earlier bul- ney.edu.au).
letin I challenged members to flood
the pages of this magazine with new There are other challenges afoot in started) are important, we should
stories. I write now with some even the world, not just in physics but also never lose sight of the fact that-
bigger challenges. in science more broadly. The AIP is investment in science and technology
a member organisation of Science has tangible and demonstrable ben-
Brian James has served the AIP with Technology Australia, which helps efits to society in health, technology,
distinction for many years both as provide us with an effective voice in communication, transport, the envi-
President (2009-11) and, since 2013, Canberra and on science and tech- ronment and much more.
as editor of Australian Physics. Under nology with the community in gen-
his stewardship our journal of record eral. Also in an earlier edition of the For all these things and more, we sup-
has reached a high standard both in bulletin, readers may have noticed port the efforts of Science Technol-
editorial comment and in content. our endorsement of the key princi- ogy Australia on our behalf, and on
behalf of many other scientific mem-
Brian has maintained a magazine ples of universal scientific literacy,
ber organisations, to raise awareness
that combines short content (news open communication of scientific of, and engender support for, science
& comment, conferences, reviews research and its findings, evidence- and technology. This is one of the
and samplings) with industry links informed policy and stable and stra- reasons we pay our membership.
(advertising and product news) and a tegic investment in research. These
varied and interesting range of longer underpin an open letter published Before signing off I would also like
articles that he regularly sources from by Science Technology Australia, and to mention another challenge that
the breadth of talent in the physics which was signed by me on behalf the AIP has taken up. Representa-
community. of the AIP (see page 84). If we are to tion by women is low in physics (as
be effective as a society in supporting are many other measures of diversity
With 5 years of editorship approach- and protecting the discipline of phys- among our practitioners). As an ac-
ing Brian has decided the time is ics we should be prepared to lend our tivity to provide awareness of and to
right within the next 12 months for voice to efforts such as this. celebrate strong women role models
him to step down and for a new edi- in physics, the AIP has been running
tor to put their stamp on the role. On It is important to recognise that, the Women in Physics lecture series
behalf of the AIP, I firstly pass on the while science in Australia is well sup- since 1997. I am pleased to promote
sincere thanks and appreciation of ported, there is more we can do to en- the appointment of the 2017 Wom-
the membership for a job well done. able our scientists and technologists en in Physics lecturer—Dr Katie
Secondly, we now need someone to be more competitive on the global Mack. Dr Mack is a worthy mem-
who can source, coordinate, proof stage. In particular, it is essential that ber of the alumni of the Women in
and outlay the content of Australian major decisions and policy designed Physics lecturers being a theoretical
Physics on a two-monthly cycle. The to guide the direction of our society astrophysicist from the University of
editor liaises closely with the printer, are, and continue to be, underpinned Melbourne and a specialist in cos-
who prepares the final layout for and guided by evidence. mology and observable tracers of
printing. The editor should have an cosmological evolution. With one of
appreciation for goals of the AIP and It is also important to maintain a the most highly followed Twitter ac-
deliver a journal that helps promote high degree of awareness of the value counts among professional astrono-
mers worldwide, Dr Mack is an in-
and strengthen the discipline of phys- of science and research. As scien-
spired and effective communicator.
ics. Like other key roles in the AIP, tists it is sometimes easy to be en-
She will be presenting her lectures on
the position of editor is voluntary but tranced by the beauty or even just tour to school, public and academic
is nonetheless rewarding in the rich- the “gee whizz” factor in science and audiences in Australia between July
ness of interaction and insight that it to present those as the key message. and September.
provides. There is, however, a small Without forgetting that beauty, “gee
honorarium associated with the role. whizz-ness” or even just straight up
For a more detailed list of the editor’s fundamental research (don’t get me Andrew Peele
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 79
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Reading the article about Australian involvement in the tribution succinctly: “Why would an acoustician … oh,
recent gravitational wave detection (Australian Physics, I see why they would need acousticians”.
54(2), Mar-Apr, 2017), I was pleased to remember that
Ra Inta, a PhD graduate from our Acoustics Lab, was Sincerely
one of the authors on the famous Abbott et mult. al. Joe Wolfe
paper (PRL 116, 061102) announcing the first direct Acoustics Lab
detection. One of my colleagues described Dr Inta’s con- UNSW Sydney.
NEWS & COMMENT
Academy of Science Awards The 2017 Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal has been award-
Recently announced awards by the Australian Academy ed to Professor Joss Bland-Hawthorn FAA (School of
of Science included the following. Physics, University of Sydney) in recognition of his as-
tronomical research and cutting-edge instrumentation,
The 2017 Matthew Flinders Medal and Lecture has helping to keep Australia at the forefront of optical as-
been awarded to Professor Barry Ninham AO FAA (Re- tronomy over the past 25 years. His legacies include es-
search School of Physics and Engineering, ANU) in rec- tablishing two astronomical fields – galactic archaeology
ognition of his discoveries that have had a revolutionary and near-field cosmology (with Professor Kenneth Free-
impact on the field of colloid science, a discipline that man FAA FRS) and astrophotonics, resulting in awards
underpins chemical engineering, cell and molecular bi- in astronomy, optics, and photonics. His innovative con-
ology and nanotechnology. tributions to astronomical technology and instrumen-
tation have been very influential and have been widely
adopted in experimental astronomy and have also been
applied to other fields, such as telecommunication, food
safety and the farming industry.
Prof Barry Nineham
He is the developer of the accepted theory of amphi-
philic molecular self-assembly, a process that underlies Prof Joss Bland-Hawthorn
modern materials science. It is a fundamental principle
of self-assembly in nanotechnology, impacting on mod- The 2017 Anton Hales Medal has been awarded to As-
ern molecular-based technologies, and slow-release tech- sociate Professor Juan Carlos Afonso (Department of
nology for in-vivo pharmaceutical drug- delivery. Earth and Planetary Sciences, Macquarie University).
Associate Professor Afonso is at the forefront of revolu-
He presently works with Professor Richard Pashley and tionising the way that geoscientists interpret the signals
a team of graduate students at the Australian Defence they obtain from deep in the Earth by geophysical meth-
Force Academy (ADFA). They discovered, and are im- ods. Up until now, each individual method was treated
plementing, simple new technologies for purification of separately and the results were often incompatible with
recycled water, desalination, low temperature chemical each other. His approach follows a long-term interdis-
reactivity, catalysis, and removal of pollutants such as ciplinary program to develop a rigorous computational
arsenic. model that unifies diverse sub-disciplines of the solid
80 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017
earth sciences. This method irons out anomalies that novel single photon sources, one fundamental building
may occur in the individual sub-disciplines, producing a block in quantum information science. He has dem-
self-consistent whole picture of the physical and chemi- onstrated new materials with record-setting properties
cal state deep in the Earth. which assist the further development of quantum com-
munication systems and their deployment in real world
applications. His work contributes to one of the pressing
issues in the modern era – ensuring that private informa-
tion and sensitive data can be secured through unbreak-
able encryption.
A/Prof Juan Carlos Afonso
The 2017 John Booker Medal has been awarded to Pro-
fessor Dayong Jin (School of Mathematical and Physical
Sciences, University of Technology Sydney). Professor
Jin is a world leader in engineering time-resolved pho- A/Prof Igor Aharonovich
tonics devices, and luminescent nanoprobes which can (Source: Australian Academy of Science)
up-convert low-energy infrared photons into more use-
ful visible light for high-contrast detection. While his The AAO's Technological Achievements
research opens up many opportunities in biomedical de- The Australian Astronomical Observatory (AAO) has
vices, early diagnosis, and light triggered nanomedicine, released a document outlining its technological achieve-
his nanodots can also be made into an ‘invisible ink’ to ments, available for download from its website: www.
protect pharmaceuticals, medical courier supplies, pass- aao.gov.au.
ports, banknotes and more.
The AAO provides Australian
Department of Industry,
Innovation and Science
astronomers with access to state-
THE AUSTRALIAN ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY
of-the-art optical and infrared
Our national centre for optical and infrared astronomy
telescopes, allowing them to
pursue world-class science. This
includes developing innovative
technologies and instruments
for these telescopes. Forty per
cent of astronomy in Australia
The Milky Way above the dome of the AAO’s Anglo-Australian Telescope. Credit: A. López-Sánchez
Prof Dayong Jin
uses optical/infrared telescopes,
and the AAO is the main provider of these facilities.
The 2017 Pawsey Medal has been awarded to Associ-
ate Professor Igor Aharonovich (School of Mathemati- The AAO operates the 3.9 m Anglo-Australian Telescope
cal and Physical Sciences, University of Technology (AAT), the largest optical/infrared telescope in Australia,
Sydney). Associate Professor Aharonovich is delivering and the 1.2 m UK Schmidt Telescope. Both are locat-
breakthrough research that underpins next generation ed at Siding Spring Observatory in New South Wales.
light-based technologies spanning energy, communica- Through its International Telescope Support Office the
tions and quantum information processing. His work AAO also supports the use of larger overseas telescopes
is original, has motivated wider research and focuses on by Australian astronomers.
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 81
National Science Statement "Over 28 years we've evolved from vendor to true part-
The Government’s National Science Statement has been ner. We are so much stronger together. Boeing allows us
released the Minister for Industry, Innovation and Sci- to turn excellent science and clever ideas into industry
ence, Senator the Hon Arthur Sinodinos. The compre- leading technology that changes lives," CSIRO's Chief
hensive statement recognises: Executive Larry Marshall said.
• The criticality of basic research Australian satellites launched
• The need for a long-term sustainable approach On 18 April an Atlas V rocket carrying three Austral-
• The importance of strong community awareness ian satellites, INSPIRE-2 (University of Sydney, ANU
about science and UNSW collaboration), UNSW-ECO and SuSAT
• The need to boost international science engagement. (University of Adelaide and UniSA collaboration) was
launched successfully from Cape Canaveral. These three
The National Science Statement sets satellites were the first Australian-built satellites in space
out the government’s science objectives for 16 years.
Australia’s
National Science and principles and provides guidance
Statement
science.gov.au/NSS
for the government’s other science-re-
2017
lated policies and initiatives into the fu-
ture, including its response to the 2030
Strategic Plan – a strategic plan by In-
novation and Science Australia for the
innovation, science and research system up to 2030, which is
expected to be completed in 2017. The statement is available
at www.science.gov.au/SCIENCEGOV.
Boeing names CSIRO a supplier of the year
Each year Boeing makes ‘supplier of the year’ awards
covering 13 categories. CSIRO has received the Tech-
nology Award for 2016. Its outstanding performance
in research and development were cited as some of the
The Cygnus capsule containing the three satellites
reasons for CSIRO being given the Technology Award. approached the ISS.
These included the development of a new hydraulic flu-
id for planes, and a safer alternative, that provides better The three satellites are part of the multi-university QB50
performance, for a commonly-used corrosion inhibitor program which aims to launch a network of 50 Cube-
in the aviation industry. Sats built by university teams all over the world as a pri-
mary payload on a low-cost launch vehicle to perform
first-class science in the largely unexplored lower ther-
mosphere.
Space agencies are not pursuing a multi-spacecraft net-
work for in-situ measurements in the lower thermo-
sphere because the cost of a network of 50 satellites built
to industrial standards would be extremely high and not
justifiable in view of the limited orbital lifetime. No at-
mospheric network mission for in-situ measurements
has been carried out in the past or is planned for the
Boeing has more than 13,000 suppliers from all 50 US future. Consequently, a network of satellites for in-situ
states and 48 countries. Supplier-provided components measurements in the lower thermosphere can only be
and assemblies make up approximately 65 per cent of realised by using very low-cost satellites, and CubeSats
the cost of Boeing products. are the only realistic option.
82 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017The launch also included the Biarri Point satellite, de- receiver, and two boards
veloped in the US, which as part of its payload has GPS testing radiation-robust
technology developed by the University of New South software and self-healing
Wales (UNSW) in partnership with Defence Science electronics. The fourth
and Technology Group. experiment is to test the
satellite’s chassis, built us-
After launch into circular low Earth orbit the payload ing a 3D-printed mate-
instruments will commence operation and data cap- rial never before flown in
ture and storage, with data downloads being made to space.
ground stations in Sydney, at the ANU and in Stras-
bourg, France. Communication access through these SuSAT will be measuring
locations will occur an estimated 4 and 6 times per day, the densities of particle
The INSPIRE-2 CubeSat
respectively, with total daily access durations of 21.6 and in the thermosphere and
28.6 minutes. the amount of water vapour in particular regions of the
atmosphere.
INSPIRE-2 will carry five instruments: a nanophotonic
spectrograph, a radiation counter, a microdosimeter, a At an estimated 8 to 12 months post-launch, orbital de-
GPS Receiver Unit and a multi-needle Langmuir probe cay due to friction with air molecules will bring the sat-
supplied by the QB50 Project. ellites into the upper reaches of Earth atmosphere. This
friction will slow, melt, fragment and degrade the craft
UNSW-ECO has four experiments including a GPS to a non-operational state.
2017 AIP Women in Physics lecturer might have shaped the first stars and galaxies and
The AIP Women in Physics lecturer for 2017 will altered the course of cosmic evolution.
be Dr Katie Mack, a theoretical astrophysicist from
the University of Melbourne. Katie specialises in Alongside her astrophysics research, Katie is deeply
cosmology and observable tracers of cosmological passionate about science communication, espe-
evolution. Her work focuses on finding new ways cially through social media, where she maintains
to understand the early universe and fundamental one of the most-followed Twitter accounts by any
physics using astronomical observations. professional astronomer world-wide. You can find
her at @astrokatie.
Her current research
focus is on dark mat- She is extremely active in other areas of science
ter, the mysterious communication and appears regularly on televi-
invisible stuff making sion, radio, and in various print media, including
up most of the matter a regular column in Cosmos Magazine. You can
in the Universe. In her find out more about Katie from her website: www.
cutting-edge research, astrokatie.com
she shows how dark
matter interactions Katie will present the 2017 Women in Physics Lec-
in the early universe tures between July and September.
Dr Katie Mack
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 83Open Letter from Science & Technology Australia
The open letter below was published on the Science & interest in our sector and to celebrate the support and suc-
Technology Australia (STA) website on 22 April 2017, cess of science and technology in Australia, while high-
to coincide with the global March for Science. STA is us- lighting the need to ensure it continues. The signatories
ing the opportunity this event presents to heighten public include AIP president Prof Andrew Peele.
As Australian scientists and technologists and their champions, we write to express our strong support for our international colleagues in science, technology,
engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Collaboration with international counterparts, in all countries and from all backgrounds, is vital to the work of STEM. The common language of STEM serves
as a bridge across cultural divides; enables cross-fertilisation of new ideas from different perspectives; and it serves to make the world healthier and more
resilient through a period of global change.
It is incredibly important that we as a society support independent research, free of political interference. The scientific method is robust, and through
it the sum of human knowledge has been advanced incrementally through the laser lens of objective testing and observation, contestability, replication of
results, and intense scrutiny. The growth of ‘alternative facts’ and the rise internationally of misrepresentation and disregard for science is, at best, troubling.
At worst, it’s life threatening on a monumental scale.
Climate change, antibiotic resistance, food and water security and other global threats will not be solved by ‘alternative facts’ but through the steady and
logical application of science and technology. In our privileged Australian society, our communities and individual lives are extended, enhanced and made
more fruitful every day by science and technology. The achievements of science and technology research have been enabled through successive governments’
support for the work of those in the STEM sectors.
We the undersigned call on leaders around the world to recognise and reinforce the value of unencumbered support for the work of scientists and
technologists. We call on those with power and influence to work towards a society based on reasoned and substantiated decision making.
We call for a world that supports, celebrates, and learns from science.
Jim Piper Kylie Walker Professor Tanya Monro Professor Brian Schmidt
President, Science & Technology Australia CEO, Science & Technology Australia Deputy VC and Vice President: Research and Nobel Laureate and VC, the Australian
Innovation, University of South Australia National University
Adam Spencer Professor Sir Gustav Nossal Todd Sampson Emeritus Professor Alan Mackay-Sim
Australian author and comedian Former Australian of the Year and former Chairof World Australian adventurer, documentary-maker, 2017 Australian of the Year
Health Organization’s Vaccines and Biologicals Program
television presenter and businessman
!
Professor Matthew Bailes Dr Anthony Chariton Anthony Cichello Jennifer Clarke Peter Derbyshire A/Professor Alan Duffy
Director, ARC Centre fof Excellence President, Society of Environmen- President, Australian Psychological Secretary, Australasian Society for National President, Council of ECR Representative, Science &
for Gravitational Wave Discovery tal Toxicology and Chemistry Society Phycology and Aquatic Botany Australian Postgraduate Associations Technology Australia
Professor Neville Exon Professor Simon Fleming Cathy Foley Professor Ian Frazer Professor Dominic Geraghty Professor Barney Glover
Program Scientist, International President, Australian Optical Polcy Chair, Science & Technology Head, Cancer Immunology Program at President, Aus Society of Clinical and Vice-Chancellor and President,
Ocean Discovery Program Society Australia UQDI and former Australian of the Year Experimental Pharmacologists & Toxicologists Western Sydney University
Professor Michael Good Kirsten Heimann A/Professor Grant Wardell-Johnson Professor Emma Johnston Menna Jones Professor David Karoly
Former Chair, National Health and Vice-President, Australasian Society Director, Australian Council of President-Elect, Science & President, Australian Mammal Professor of Atmospheric Science,
Medical Research Council for Phycology and Aquatic Botany Environmental Deans and Directors Technology Australia Society University of Melbourne
Tim Minchin
Australian comedian, actor,
composer, songwriter, pianist
Professor Lisa Kewley Professor Virginia Kilborn Professor Graham Lamb Dr Francine Marques Professor Chris O’Neill
President, Astronomical Society of and director
Director, ARC Centre for Excellence President, Australian Physiological ECR Representative, Science & President, Society for Reproductive
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84 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017Twinkling of the stars – new opportunities
in a very old field of study
Laurence Campbell
Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide SA 5001, Australia
In the 13th century Francis Bacon wrote “Hence we see nothing so frequently of whose cause we know less:
it is the scintillation of the stars”. Even today, while the scintillation, or twinkling, of the stars is familiar to
most people, few know the explanation for it. It was been the subject of heated, even acrimonious, dispute
between scientists. Yet most of its characteristics can be investigated with simple equipment. This paper
describes the development of the theories about twinkling and observations that can be made by eye and
with a sensitive digital camera.
Historical development puscular rather than the wave theory of light was to lead
The Pokomo People of eastern Africa and the Euhalayi his admirers to stymie for many years the wave theory.
of New South Wales both believed that the stars of the When Thomas Young put forward evidence for the wave
Milky were the campfires of ‘ancient ones’ or the dead theory of light it was described as “destitute of every spe-
[1]. The similarity between the twinkling of the stars cies of merit” [5]. However, in 1859 Arago postulated
and the flickering of a distant campfire may have led to that twinkling was an interference effect between rays of
this belief. Aristotle noted the twinkling of stars and the light from opposite sides of the lens [6]. This theory was
absence of twinkling of the planets and ascribed this dif- denounced by Lord Rayleigh, who described it as “aban-
ference to the lesser distance to the planets [2]. Maybe doned by the best authorities” [7].
he made the analogy to the increasing shimmer with
distance that is seen horizontally in hot conditions. The Lord Rayleigh assumed that the colour variations were
idea that twinkling is related to the atmosphere was put a consequence of regular atmospheric dispersion, which
formally by a Spanish-Arab Islamic philosopher, jurist also produces the green flash (shown in Figure 1). When
and physician, Averroës, in the 12th century, when he light goes into a denser medium, it refracts towards the
ascribed both the quivering of the Sun and the scintilla- normal to the surface, with the amount of bending in-
tion of the stars, both at rising and setting, as due to the creasing with decreasing wavelength (i.e. blue bends more
“density of the medium” [3]. than red), as seen by light passing through a prism and
producing a spectrum. This refraction also occurs in the
Roger Bacon, a 13th century monk, wrote: “If it be said atmosphere where light coming in at a low angle bends
downwards towards increasing air density. When the Sun
that when the air is set in vigorous motion by the wind
is setting, the green light bends more than red and so an
there would be greater and more violent scintillation,
observer can still see green light when the sun is below the
our reply must be that, just as the necessary brilliancy,
horizon in red light, hence giving the green flash.
neither too much nor too little, is required for scintil-
lation…” [3] Bacon’s conditions on brilliance were an
attempt to explain why bright planets and faint stars do
not appear to twinkle and he went on to include eye-
strain in the explanation. However, it is clear that an
association between atmospheric motion and twinkling
had been made by this time.
It was Robert Hooke who is first known to have attrib-
uted twinkling to layers in the atmosphere having dif-
ferent temperatures that act as lenses [4]. Sir Issac New-
ton also wrote of twinking as an obvious atmospheric
phenomenon, and explained the absence of twinkling in
telescopic observations as due to the large aperture of the Figure 1: The green flash (top), seen over the sea, almost
telescope [4]. However, his tendency to favour the cor- disappears after 0.3 s (bottom).
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 85The physical separation of the paths of different colours This modern understanding of twinkling is illustrated
that eventually reach the observer’s eye was invoked by schematically in Figure 2. The phase front and corre-
Rayleigh as the explanation for colour twinkling, in that sponding intensity variations may be different for differ-
an atmospheric irregularity can pass through the path ent wavelengths. Bright points in the intensity pattern
of one colour, scattering that colour with the result that occur where a section of the wavefront happens to be
the observer sees the complementary colour. Rayleigh equidistant from that point, so that the contributions
did an extensive calculation of the effect and, despite from that segment add up in phase, while a segment
his dismissive attitude to Arago, did admit that it was over which the contributions vary in phase by half a
hard to understand how the atmospheric irregularities wavelength produces a null, leaving a complementary
could be sufficiently abrupt to be confined to the path colour. If the layer of turbulence moves bodily with the
of one colour. Rayleigh also explained the small amount wind, the associated intensity pattern moves with it,
of twinkling of the larger planets, in that rays from dif- thus producing a random series of fluctuations in the
ferent parts of the planet would follow different paths eye of the observer.
through the atmosphere, thus leading to an averaging
effect in the eye.
In 1949 Hartridge and Weale, in a letter to Nature [8],
ascribed changes in brightness and colour to the slight
movement of the star image over the retina and to lo-
cal variations in retinal receptors. This led to a confron-
tation at a meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society
[9]. Hartridge argued that according to the refraction
hypothesis, the stars should appear to move as much as
10”, which is not observed. Astronomers gave examples
of instrumental measurements showing clear evidence
that twinkling was a real change in intensity and colour
in the light pattern. No resolution was reached, but a Figure 2: A schematic diagram of the production of
intensity and colour variations in the diffraction model.
“Mr Hoyle” said “I find it difficult to believe that the The initially plane wavefront in the starlight is distorted
atmosphere is not the main source of the twinkling of as it passes through many refractive-index irregularities.
stars, but I do think that Prof. Hartridge is right in say- Enhancements in intensity occur at points on the ground
ing that the phenomenon is far more complicated than which, on average, are equidistant from many points on the
distorted wavefront. If the turbulent irregularities move as
is usually supposed.” a whole with the wind, the diffraction patterns also move
at the same speed.
This note of caution was soon justified when Little pro-
posed the diffraction explanation of twinkling [10]. In Light from a double star traversing a single layer of
this, the initially plane wavefront of the starlight be- turbulence will contain identical diffraction patterns,
comes progressively more distorted as it passes through separated by a distance determined by the stars’ angular
many individual refractive index irregularities (eddies) separation and the height of the turbulence. This makes
in atmospheric turbulence. Applying diffraction theory it possible to measure wind speed and turbulence char-
implies that this produces intensity fluctuations on the acteristics as a function of height in the atmosphere [11].
ground at a distance of kilometres from the turbulence.
Little showed that the intensity variations can be pro- Simple observations.
duced by much smaller atmospheric density variations Twinkling is an example of a natural, everyday phenom-
than required for refraction by individual atmospheric enon that can only be explained by physics, but also re-
irregularities. He explained colour scintillation as due to quires understanding of aspects of human vision. The
the distortion of the wavefront being different for differ- advent of the sensitive digital camera has made it pos-
ent wavelengths, thus producing different intensity pat- sible for almost anyone to investigate the phenomenon.
terns at the ground, but noted that regular atmospheric
dispersion at elevations below about 15° would also act Some characteristics of twinkling can be seen by an el-
to increase the colour variations produced. ementary observation that requires no equipment. Hold
86 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017your finger up at arm’s length in front of a bright star observed frequencies increase with elevation. The lower
(preferably the brightest, Sirius, when it is at about 20° image in Figure 3 shows the same technique applied to
elevation). Focus your eyes on the finger, so that the the star Antares (left) and the planet Mars, illustrating
star becomes two out-of-focus blobs. Depending on Aristotle’s observation that stars twinkle while planets
conditions, you may see fluctuations in the intensity of (generally) do not. (Mars may be seen to twinkle when
the blobs that are not the same. Uncorrelated or time- it is in opposition and so much smaller in angular size
shifted fluctuations indicate that the intensity patterns, than when this photo was taken.)
and hence the turbulent structures producing them, are
smaller in size than the distance between your eyes. No
(at least with my eyes) colour fluctuations are seen by
this method. This is likely because the colour sensitive
cone cells of the eye in the fovea are in the image of the
finger, while the two star images are being detected by
the colour-insensitive rods outside of the fovea.
The twinkling of stars and the occasional hints of col-
our variation that are seen directly are due to extreme
excursions of the light intensity, as the fluctuations are
generally so high in frequency as to be hidden by per-
sistence of vision. In 1857 Michael Faraday reported
[12] observing strong twinkling of Sirius and Aldebaran Figure 3: 0.5 second exposures made while rotating the
“and on passing the axis of the eyes across them so as to camera around an axis pointing towards the star. On the
produce a changing place for their image on the retina, upper left the twinkling frequency is low. The camera
was slightly defocussed to produce a wider trace. The top
it was seen that the difference due to twinkling was so panels show low- (left) and high-frequency twinkling.
great as at certain moments to cause the apparent extinc- In each case the image was slightly defocussed to allow
tion of the stars.” (The effect is now often visible in traf- reproduction here. The lower panel shows the twinkling
fic at night, when you sweep your field of vision across of the star Antares (left) and the lack of twinkling for Mars,
when the two objects were close together.
LED rear lights that are flashing rapidly and you see a
string of individual red dots.) M. F. also suggested rotat- Including street lights in the picture allows the rate of
ing a handheld mirror while looking at a reflection of colour changes to be estimated by comparison with the
the star to see the same effect. 100-Hz fluctuation in the intensity of the mains-driven
lights. (Each cycle of the 50-Hz streetlights produces two
A much easier method (as described in the meeting of peaks in light intensity, as the current peaks in one direc-
the Royal Astronomical Society described above) is to tion and then the other.) In Figure 4 a mirror has been
take a pair of binoculars and apply a rotating motion so used to place an image of a street light close to a star,
that the image of the star traces out a curve in the field allowing one to see that at times the star goes through a
of view. A series of points of different colour along the colour change within 0.01s.
curve can be easily seen in conditions of even moderate
twinkling. Applying this method with a modern digital
camera (here an SLR with a 10x zoom lens, with image
stabilization switched off, f/5.6 and ASA 6400) allows
the rapid changes in colour to be recorded, as shown in
Figure 3, where the shutter was open for 0.5 s. The top
panels show relatively slow (left) and fast (right) twin-
kling. (The star image was slightly defocussed to give a
reproducible trace). The human eye observing the light
fluctuations in the left image might pick out the bright- Figure 4: A mirror has been used to produce an image of
a street light close to a star. The orange blobs of the street
est colour changes, with the individual colours lasting
light indicate the length corresponding to 1/100”, showing
up to 1/30”, but the much faster changing colours in that colour changes in the light of the star occur in about
the right image would average out. As a general rule the this interval.
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 87Around 1600 Simon Marius observed scintillation by 53 degrees. This may be due to the higher frequencies as-
focusing his eye with a lens, observing the stars as cir- sociated with higher elevations, so that 1/50” is not suf-
cles with rapid changes of colour [4]. This can be imple- ficiently short to freeze the colour changes and patterns.
mented with a camera by defocussing the image of the
star, so that an “image” of the front lens is produced by
recording the colour of the light coming from each part
of the lens. When the camera is rotated as before, this
constantly-changing image is smeared out into a wide
trace across the picture, as in Figure 5. On the left, there
are a few circular patches that indicate that the whole
lens was covered with a light pattern for a very short
time, with an intensity much greater than the average
for the star. Some contain patterns of the order of 1 cm Figure 6: “Images” of a 40-mm aperture as a function of
across. Such small bright patches can only be explained altitude and exposure time, by defocussing an image of
by the diffraction theory of twinkling, as a refractive at- Sirius.
mospheric lens cannot focus to such a small scale. On
the top right the intensity is much more uniform and The movement of the twinkling patterns can be investi-
changes slowly, while bands suggest the movement of gated using a pair of mirrors aligned to reflect the same
small structures across the camera aperture. star to the camera, as illustrated in Figure 7. When ap-
plying this technique on different occasions, sometimes
the images on the two mirrors are quite different, while
at others they are the same with a small time displace-
ment. The latter indicates that the patterns have moved
from one mirror to the other in a small time interval.
This would allow the wind speed at the height of the
turbulence to be measured.
Figure 5: 0.5-second scans using defocussing to “image”
the 40-mm lens aperture for Sirius (top) and an Iridium
flash (bottom). For Sirius there are short intervals of high
intensity, showing spatial structure (left) while on the
right the colour changes are much slower and the intensity
changes much smaller, with spatial structures producing
bands as they move across the lens. The interaction
between the pattern and lens motion is clearly shown in
the lower panel, where the banding changes direction as
the camera motion is reversed. Figure 7: Two mirrors at slightly different angles reflect the
light of a star towards the camera. Rotating the camera
A clearer indication of the spatial structures in the light (focused on the star) over about a second records the
intensity and colour in the starlight pattern at a separation
pattern is given by taking successive pictures of the ap- of a few centimetres.
erture. In Figure 6, a compilation of 1/50 and 1/100-s
“images” of the 40-mm aperture is shown for elevations Satellites reflecting sunlight do not appear to twinkle.
of 17°, 23° and 53°. Each horizontal row is a sequence This is likely due to the rapid movement of the satellite,
of images taken in quick succession. At the lower eleva- as the twinkling pattern moves at a rate determined by
tions structures down to 1 cm in size are visible. There is the ratio of distances between the ground and the tur-
much less colour variation and evidence of structures at bulence and the turbulence and the satellite. Thus any
88 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017twinkling pattern would move rapidly, even for station- [9] The Observatory, 70, 55 (1950).
ary turbulence, producing frequencies too high to be [10] C. G. Little, Mon. Not. Royal Ast. Soc. 111, 289 (1951).
detected by the eye or the methods above. The Iridium [11] L. Campbell and W. G. Elford, J. Atmos. Terr. Phys., 52,
communication satellites have polished antennas that 313 (1990).
reflect sunlight to produce a “flash” (lasting a few sec- [12] Michael Faraday, Phil. Mag. Ser. 4, 13, 301 (1857).
onds) that is up to about 27 times as bright as Venus. In
the lower panel of Figure 5 a scan of a 4-mm aperture Author biography
in the light of an Iridium flash clearly shows twinkling Laurence Campbell com-
patterns, with banding that changes direction when the pleted a PhD in 1991 at the
motion of the camera aperture is reversed. This suggests University of Adelaide on
that the twinkling patterns were moving quite slowly, “Stellar Scintillation and its
in order to show interaction with the movement of the Use in Atmospheric Meas-
camera lens. Given the rapid motion of the satellite, this urements”. Since then he
apparent slow speed is difficult to explain. Thus Iridium has worked at the Univer-
flashes provide an extra light source to use in the study of sity of Adelaide on analysis
twinkling, but bright ones occur only about once a week of meteor observations and
on average. It would be very interesting to take a picture (primarily) at Flinders Uni-
when the flash occurs close to Sirius. Such a conjunction versity on numerical simu-
at the location of this author occurred recently, but was lation of electron-impact processes in planetary and co-
obscured by cloud. metary atmospheres. He has maintained an interest in
his PhD subject, particularly as an example of the role of
Summary physics in understanding the world around us.
The mechanism of the twinkling of the stars has been
a source of scientific argument over many centuries.
While diffraction due to atmospheric turbulence is now Award for
accepted, most scientists outside the field of remote sens-
ing are not aware of it. This is unfortunate, because it is
Outstanding Service
a regularly visible natural phenomenon that can only be to Physics in Australia
explained by physics and now, with the availability of This Award will be open to members of the
sensitive digital cameras, can be investigated by almost AIP. Nominations may be made by a Branch
anyone. Thus it could be used more in demonstrating Committee or by three members of the AIP.
the utility of physics to explaining natural phenomena. There will be no more than three awards
In the process many other aspects of physics can be dem- nationwide in any one year and the Selection
onstrated, such as the regular pulsation of street lights, Committee, which will be appointed by the
the basic physics of human vision, prediction of Iridium Executive, will reserve the right to make no
flashes and the ability to make use of the advanced fea- awards in any one year.
tures of modern cameras.
The AIP Award for Outstanding Service
References to Physics will recognise an exceptional
[1] http://sa.apana.org.au/~paulc/loreaussie03.html contribution on the part of an individual.
[2] Aristotle, “De Caelo”, Book 2 (350 B.C.) Nominations should be accompanied by a
[3] “The Opus Majus of Roger Bacon Volume II”, translated by clear one or two page citation describing the
R. B. Burke (Russell & Russell Inc., New York, 1962). outstanding service given by the nominee.
[4] G. Monaco, Memorie della Società Astronomia Italiana 61,
819 (1990).
The closing date for nominations is
1 June 2017. For further information see
[5] Anonymous, Edinburgh Review 1, 453 (1803).
the AIP website or the AIP Special Projects
[6] M. Arago, Mon. Not. Royal Ast. Soc. 13, 197 (1853).
Officer, Olivia Samandzic: aip_member_
[7] Lord Rayleigh, Phil. Mag., 36 129 (1893). one@aip.org.au.
[8] H. Hartridge and R. Weale, Nature 164, 999 (1949).
54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 89The Australian Bureau of Meteorology
Space Weather Services
Murray Parkinson
Space Weather Services, NSW Regional Office, Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Surry Hills, NSW 2010
The risk of extreme space weather disrupting critical infrastructure is increasingly being acknowledged.
For example, former President Barrack Obama issued an executive order on 13th October 2016 addressing
his concern that extreme space weather events have the potential to disrupt health and safety across
entire continents [1]. Space Weather Services (SWS) is a section of the Specialised Services Branch of the
Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Space Weather Services aims to understand and predict the impact of
space weather on people and technology in the Australian region, thereby supporting decision making by
the Australian government, defence, industry and the general public. The aim of this article is to provide
an introduction to Space Weather Services, why we are relevant and important, and some of the grand
scientific challenges we need the basic physics community to solve.
The Bureau of Meteorology is Australia's national protect the electricity grid from the impact of extreme
weather, climate and water agency, operating under the space weather.
authority of the Meteorology Act 1955 and the Water
Act 2007. Space Weather Services (SWS) is a section of Obama’s far-sighted executive order asserts that “Space
the Specialised Services Branch of the Bureau of Mete- Weather has the potential to simultaneously affect and
orology. The World Meteorological Organisation has disrupt health and safety across entire continents. Success-
defined space weather as “the physical and phenomeno- fully preparing for space weather events is an all-of-nation
logical state of the natural space environment, including endeavour that requires partnerships across governments,
the Sun and the interplanetary and planetary environ- emergency managers, academia, the media, the insur-
ments.” This definition is open and broad because of ance industry, non-profits, and the private sector.” [Sec.
the diversity of phenomena pervading the space envi- 1, Policy].
ronment.
It is worth perusing this order in full, even if it is just
The impact of space weather on technology and the to gain a sense of how seriously the threat is taken by
Australian economy will continue to grow with our in- senior engineers, physicists and political leaders in the
creasing use and access to the space environment. SWS USA. Of relevance to Australia, we can expect to be
aims to understand and predict the impact of space courted by representatives of The Secretary of State.
weather on people and technology in the Australian Their mission will be to encourage Australia to con-
region, thereby supporting decision making by the tribute to efforts to strengthen the world's capacity to
Australian government, defence, industry and the gen- deal with the problem [Sec. 4 (h)].
eral public. We aim to provide relevant space weather
products and services of the highest possible standard The Bureau of Meteorology contributes to the inter-
to Australian and international customers. national effort to mitigate the deleterious impacts of
day-by-day and rare extreme space weather through
On 13th October 2016, President Barack Obama is- the operation of the Australian Space Forecast Centre
sued a White House executive order titled, "Coordi- (ASFC), a key Regional Warning Centre (RWC) for
nating Efforts to Prepare the Nation for Space Weather space weather as designated by the International Space
Events" [1]. This is a whole-of-government order de- Environment Service (ISES). The function of the
signed to mitigate the impacts of space weather. The ASFC is to assess and interpret observations and model
order follows on the tails of earlier orders issued by the outputs to generate and communicate hindcasts, now-
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to casts and forecasts of space weather conditions affect-
the North American Electric Reliability Cooperation ing humans, operations and technology. The ASFC
(NERC) directing the development of strategies to maintains a physical presence in the form of a forecast
90 AUSTRALIAN PHYSICS 54(3) | MAY-JUN 2017You can also read
