By Mara Hosoda, Public Affairs Section, U.S. Consulate General, Auckland.
On July 4, 2016 NASA’s Juno mission arrived at Jupiter to study the large, distant planet. Studying what Jupiter is made of and what lies beneath its swirling clouds is critical to understanding how the solar system and Earth came about.
Auckland was fortunate to have Dr. Scott Bolton, the NASA Principal Investigator for Juno, in town on Friday July 29, 2016. During the day Dr. Bolton took a trip north to Warkworth to view AUT University’s radio telescopes. He was graciously hosted by Professor Sergei Guylyaev, the Director of the Institute for Radio Astronomy and Space Research. Radio telescopes were one of Dr. Bolton’s very first areas of specialty research as student, so he thoroughly enjoyed his visit.
In the evening, Dr. Bolton gave a public lecture on Juno: Mission to Jupiter at AUT University. Dr. Bolton talked about the purpose of the Mission, to study Jupiter’s origin, atmosphere, magnetosphere and interior structure. He also discussed Juno’s Lego passenger figurines and displayed stunning images and sounds of Jupiter that have been discovered so far. Such elements of the Juno Mission operate to encourage interest in science, technology, and environment from young society members and artists.
The audience ranged from children to adults, including the U.S. Consul General Melanie Higgins, the Auckland Astronomical Society, and university students. Dr. Bolton engaged in Q&A as well as some networking after the event.
The U.S. Consulate General in Auckland was proud to welcome Dr. Scott Bolton for this unique experience and hopes he’ll have the chance to visit New Zealand again in the near future.
Related:
Find out more about NASA’s Juno mission.
