World Space Week
in Sri Lanka 2021
Organized by the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space University of Colombo (SEDS UOC) Chapter
in Collaboration with the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space Sri Lanka (SEDS SL) main body
About World Space Week
World Space Week (WSW) is an UN-declared global event that joins participants of all ages and nations together, opening up a whole plethora of opportunities to boost awareness and knowledge, as well as to shine new lights of motivation to the journeys of every mind.
The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space University of Colombo Chapter (SEDS UOC) is a society of the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka that consists of undergraduates who are enthusiastic about various aspects related to space exploration and development.
The national SEDS body, Students for the Exploration and Development of Space Sri Lanka (SEDS SL) governs 16 chapters established under it with members from a number of government and private universities, as well as a separate chapter for school children named SEDS Juniors.
Articles
Margaret Hamilton, The Woman Who Landed Software On The Moon
One of the most historic events in the 20th Century, the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969 is familiar to almost everyone across the planet. But it would not have been a possibility at all if it weren't for the error-wariness and assured-planning of "Margaret Hamilton: The Woman Who Landed Software on the Moon".
Article By M. T. Thara Pieris
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The Pioneers: Firsts For Women And Women Who Were First
It takes a great deal of courage and strength, and an even bigger deal of hard work and dedication to be a person who would set their prints on the historical timeline of humans on Earth. It takes a whole new level however, to do so in outer space. Here's I. A. Vidanegamage adding her tribute to celebrating the accomplishments of women in space. 👩🏽🔬👩🏻🚀
Article By I. A. Vidanegamage
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“Where Are We?”: An Answer From Margaret Geller And Vera Rubin
Certain careers were seemingly limited, rather unfairly and biasedly, to men only. The field of science, and especially astronomy, was not so different from this fact too. However, through sheer will and a thirst for answers, some women set out to not only establish themselves as experts in the field but also provide answers to seemingly impossible questions.
Article By R. A. D. R. S. Rupasinghe
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Four Successful Women for the Hubble's Success
A telescope in space is not something that is in any way a small feat. Years of planning and thousands of arguments to convince its importance were a part of this journey. N. D. Wanniarachchi brings to you the tale of "Four Successful Women for the Hubble's Success". 👩🏻🚀👩🏻💼
Article By N. D. Wanniarachchi
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Hidden Figures: Hidden No More
Progress isn't limited to technological advancements. Breaking the boundaries in society that we have put is in many ways, the greatest form of progress. In a time where segregation was used to separate both race and gender, many prominent figures were put in a shadow. S. S. Gunasekara would like to shine a light on some of these "Hidden Figures: Hidden No More". 👩🏽🏫👩🏾🎓👩🏾🏫
Article By S. S. Gunasekara
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Harvard Computers: Unsung Pioneers of Modern Astronomy
Astronomy is a scientific field that is filled with a seemingly unending stack of data. Whether we can derive a clear meaning from them or not is a conclusion arriving after many many long hours of arduous calculations and considerations. F.B.I. Nimeshi would like to expose you to a group of women who revolutionized astronomy, but remain known only collectively as the "Harvard Computers: Unsung Pioneers of Modern Astronomy". 👩🏻🏫✨
Article By F.B.I. Nimeshi
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One Giant Leap for Womankind: the First All-Female Spacewalk
Moments in history are made in the direst and outlandish circumstances. Writing a new chapter in human exploration of the infinite cosmos, we have two brave astronauts who set their marks as firsts in the history of space exploration. Here's I.C. Ramachandra's account on how two women took "One Giant Leap for Womankind: the First All-Female Spacewalk". 👩🏻🚀👩🏻🚀
Article By I.C. Ramachandra
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4th Oct 2021
The moon, you can capture on a lens because it reflects light. But a black hole? A black hole compresses matter into an ultra-small volume, making its gravity too intense for even light to escape. The only chance to observe one is through data captured around a black hole. Yet who could analyze 5 petabytes of data sent by the Event Horizons Telescope? Well, Katie Bouman took a head-start here and did not give up until she had developed the first-ever computer algorithm to construct an image of a black hole, marking another first in the history of space exploration by a woman. Leading her team, she played a major role in the development of CHIRP, the algorithm that brought the first image of a black hole to light...
Post designed by: Rev. Nugagolle Seevali Thero (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: M. T. Thara Pieris (SEDS UOC)
5th Oct 2021
For decades, women have performed essential roles to enable the safe development of human space flight, often from the ground, and behind the scenes. We are going on a journey to celebrate the significant contributions women have made to space missions by highlighting amazingly cool female space pioneers. These trailblazers are the ones inspiring a new generation of girls with hopes of space travel. It inspires all women to engage more within the space sector and to highlight their abilities and confidence. Here are a few of these pioneers and the milestones they set in Exploration: The First Women and the Firsts by Women.
Post designed by: Rev. Nugagolle Seevali Thero (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: I. A. Vidanegamage (SEDS UOC)
6th Oct 2021
Even though black holes seem a work of fiction, Roger Penrose (in the year 1965), described in great detail their formation and proved their existence using Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Even Einstein himself did not believe in the existence of black holes; these supermassive monsters that let nothing escape from it. Not even light. But it could not escape Andrea Mia Ghez, whose pioneering work gave us the most convincing evidence of a supermassive compact object in the center of our milky way. Here’s to the 4th woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics, tributing to her accomplishments and her contribution to modern astronomy!
Post designed by: W.P. Pallewatta (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: Rev. Nugagolle Seevali Thero (SEDS UOC)
7th Oct 2021
It shows galaxies, it shows dust… and everything in between. The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) started writing a new legacy of space exploration after its launch in 1990. In the process of making Prof. Lyman Spitzer's concept of a space telescope into a reality, there were four talented and inspirational women behind the HST's success. Dr. Nancy Roman, also known as "Mother of Hubble", was the chief of astronomy at NASA during the decades it took to build this. Dr. Kathryn Sullivan went to outer space in the deploying mission. The one who supported the funding to the project was Sen. Barbara Mikulski, and Dr. Wendy Freedman, led the Hubble Key Project, determining the age of the universe. Thanks to their immense effort and courage, we now can zoom into the cosmos, learning how it works.
Post designed by: E. D. J. Chathurya (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: N. D. Wanniarachchi (SEDS UOC)
8th Oct 2021
The meteoric rise of Sri Lankan-born Prof. Hiranya Pieris from simple beginnings of science fiction fascination to entering the Royal Astronomical Societies' hall of fame is nothing less than that of a legendary scientist. She was awarded the Eddington Medal (2021) for shifting the field of cosmology to a data-driven subject, the Gruber Prize (2012) for exquisite measurements of anisotropies in relic radiation from the Big Bang, Breakthrough Prize (2018) for detailed maps of the early universe, Göran Gustafsson Prize in Physics (2020) for researches on the dynamics of the cosmic structure and Max Born Medal (2021) for creating new interdisciplinary connections between cosmology and high-energy physics are few other prizes she has been honored with, as she makes progress on expanding the horizons of knowledge on cosmology at present.
Post designed by: E. D. J. Chathurya (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: S. S. Gunasekara (SEDS UOC)
9th Oct 2021
I think the biggest advice that I could give people is to actually try and live beyond your dreams by pushing yourself, challenging yourself to do things a little bit outside of your comfort zone. - Peggy Whitson. Gracing for cumulative spaceflight records, she made 10 spacewalks around the International Space Station (ISS) once spending 665 days cruising the cosmos and became the first female commander of ISS. As an icon for aspiring female astronauts everywhere, Peggy Whitson in her pioneering and remarkable achievements, is forever hailed as the most outstanding personality in the space exploration saga.
Post designed by: W.P. Pallewatta (SEDS UOC)
Captioned by: I.C. Ramachandra (SEDS UOC)
Survey
One of these events is a nationwide survey that aims to analyze the attitudes that the population of Sri Lanka shows towards space exploration and development-related activities. We would like to thank you for taking part in this survey, and helping the advancement of space education and activities in the nation!
අභ්යවකාශ ගවේෂණය හා සංවර්ධනය හා සම්බන්ධ ක්රියාකාරකම් කෙරෙහි ශ්රී ලාංකේය ප්රජාව දක්වන ආකල්ප විශ්ලේෂණය කිරීම අරමුණු කර ගත් සමීක්ෂණයක් දීප ව්යාප්ත ව ක්රියාත්මක කිරීම එවැනි එක් වැඩසටහනකි. මෙම සමීක්ෂණයට සහභාගි වීම සහ ජාතියේ අභ්යවකාශ අධ්යාපනය සහ ක්රියාකාරකම්වල දියුණුව සඳහා උපකාර කිරීම ගැන අපි ඔබට ස්තුතිවන්ත වෙමු!
அவற்றில் ஓர் அங்கமாக நாடளாவிய ரீதியில் விண்வெளி ஆய்வுகள் மற்றும் கல்வி தொடர்பான மக்களின் எண்ணப்பாட்டை அறிந்து கொள்ள இந்தக் கணக்கெடுப்பை ஏற்பாடு செய்துள்ளோம்
Submission Deadline
Poster Competition
Guidelines
One of the events held for World Space Week in Sri Lanka 2021 is a poster competition that is open to all members of SEDS Sri Lanka.
- Posters can be both hand-drawn/painted or graphically designed.
- Graphically designed posters can be either illustrated from scratch or manipulated with existing resources.
- Each chapter can nominate a MAXIMUM of 5 submissions.
The theme for World Space Week 2021 is "Celebrating the accomplishments of Women in Space Exploration". Please note that your poster submission should be related to this theme as well.
Submission Deadline
Panel Discussion
Join in as we engage in a discussion on the inspiring accomplishments of three remarkable young women in space, and the advice they have to give to you, as you pursue a career in STEM.
Registration Link
