Author: Dimitris Stamatellos
Jeremiah Horrocks Public Lecture: Sun, stones and stars: exploring ancient sky knowledge
Abstract In the 1960s Stonehenge and many other British prehistoric monuments were interpreted as “ancient observatories” — ideas that generated a huge wave of popular interest but also proved highly controversial among academics, pitting astronomers against archaeologists as they reached fundamentally different conclusions on the basis of the same evidence. Read More …
Jeremiah Horrocks College Lecture Series: “The Search for Exoplanets & Life in the Universe”
In this talk I will discuss how we have discovered over 6000 planets in star systems beyond our own, and how we hope to determine if any of them hold life. Mark Noris is a Senior Lecturer in Observational Astronomy at the University of Lancashire. Mark runs Alston Observatory which Read More …
Jeremiah Horrocks Autumn Lecture
Abstract We often hear it said that our Sun is an ordinary, unexceptional star, but in fact, both it and our Solar System may be highly unusual. In this talk I will discuss what we understand about the still unsolved problem of how stars – both like our Sun and Read More …
UK technology launches into space aboard NASA’s IMAP mission
A British-built instrument has launched today as part of NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) mission, which will help scientists better understand the protective magnetic bubble surrounding our solar system. Professor Silvia Dalla from JHI is involved in this achievement. IMAP will act like a weather station in space, studying the solar Read More …
UK’s longest Foucault pendulum at Preston’s Harris Museum
35-metre scientific marvel modernised by University of Lancashire to showcase Earth’s rotation as part of £19 million cultural transformation. The Harris Museum & Art Gallery has demonstrated the UK’s longest Foucault pendulum, marking a significant milestone in both scientific education and cultural heritage preservation. The impressive 35-metre pendulum, which surpasses the Read More …
Preston Enjoys Driest August in over 20 Years
Astronomers at the University of Lancashire have announced this week that in 2025 Preston enjoyed its driest August in over 20 years and one of the driest in 175 years since records began. The weather station at the Jeremiah Horrocks Observatory in Moor Park has been recording the weather in Read More …
A paper by JHI researchers featured on the front cover of IEEE Transactions on Magnetics
Front cover of the recently published Issue 7, (Vol 61), of the IEEE Transactions on Magnetics: The image shows the simulated recording of a track on the magnetic layer of a Hard Disk Drive (HDD). Current HDD technology is reaching its physical limit in terms of the amount of data that Read More …
Jeremiah Horrocks Summer Public Lecture (26th June)
Everyone is taught as a child that the Sun is 150 million km away from the Earth. But how do we know that? Have a look at the Sun at sunset sometime. Is it obvious to you how far away it is? The Sun is half a degree in angular Read More …
Lancashire Science Festival attracts huge crowds
The biennial Lancashire Science Festival was held at the University of Central Lancashire from 15–17 May 2025. Aimed at inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers, the event attracted around 10,000 visitors. Young children and their families enjoyed a wide range of exhibitions and hands-on experiences. At the JHI Read More …
