Sunday, 22th of November 2020 is Science Day in Flanders, a dazzling day full of discovering and experimenting fun via www.dagvandewetenschap.be.

The International Space Station was assembled in orbit, and today marks the 22nd anniversary of the launch of the first module of the ISS “Zarya” (meaning “dawn” in Russian) into space (November 20, 1998). A few weeks later, the second module “Unity” was launched and the two modules were coupled together, marking the first stage in the assembly of this permanent station, a cooperation between nations to propel humanity further into an era of space travel and space exploration for humans.

Cluster is one of the few space missions that is older than 22% of the Belgian population! Celebrating its 20th birthday this year, it has been gathering data about the Earth’s magnetosphere ever since. This continuous monitoring is of particular interest to researchers, as it allows for the study of long-term processes in the Earth’s magnetosphere, and how these processes depend on the Sun’s variability.

On Saturday October 10, from 2 p.m. to 5:10 p.m., seven women scientists will tell you about their research during the first Soapbox Science event in Belgium, which will be exceptionally held online due to COVID-19.

The hole in the ozone layer above the Antarctic is very deep this year, due to the exceptionally cold temperatures in the stratosphere. Whereas the ozone hole over Antarctica was the smallest ever measured last year, it could well be one of the largest this year. Whether the ozone hole will actually evolve towards a record, will be confirmed by satellite observations in the coming days and weeks and will depend mainly on the further stability of the stratospheric polar vortex.

On Saturday October 3rd, 2020, after one year of closure and €13 million of investments, the Euro Space Center in Transinne will reopen its doors to the public! The Euro Space Center is the ideal place to discover the world of space exploration with the entire family, but it also allows young people to stay for a total immersion course, whether on school visits or during holiday camps.