Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy

Asteroid Day 2026 - Open Doors Day at the Astronomical Institute

For several years, around June the 30th— which marks the international celebration of "Asteroid Day"— The Astronomical Institute has been opening its doors to the Universe for the general, curious and science loving public.

The "Asteroid Day" event was established by the United Nations in 2016 to highlight the importance of studying small bodies in the Solar System and, above all, the potential danger of a disastrous asteroid impact with Earth. June the 30th was chosen because on this day in 1908, the Tunguska Event occurred. During this event, an asteroid or a comet fragment caught by Earth's gravity exploded at a low altitude above Siberia, causing a series of unusual phenomena and flattening 2,000 square kilometers of forest.

Accordingly, we celebrated Asteroid Day this year on June 26th, 2026. We welcomed children and students accompanied by parents and grandparents, as well as curious adults. We shared stories about asteroids, the night sky, stars, galaxies, and the Universe, while answering our visitors' enthusiastic and quirky questions.

The Institute provides the public with a guided tour created and hosted by our research staff, with the support of our administrative colleagues. This year, we were also joined by three passionate volunteer students currently undergoing training and internships at the institute. Additionally, our partners from Spaceclub (the Astronomy Club of the Military Space and Telecommunications Agency) and the Romanian Astronomical Society for Meteors (SARM) took part in the event.

The tour consists of several stages. In the first part, visitors explored the Meridian Hall, which showcases instruments used in the past for precise observations, measurements, and calculations. Every instrument has a fascinating story, including the meridian transit telescope, the satellite observation camera, and the Felix mechanical calculator. The second stage took visitors to the Equatorial Dome, home to the largest and oldest refractor telescope in Romania. Featuring a 38 cm diameter and a 6-meter focal length lens, the telescope is equipped with a classic photographic plate camera used to track and photograph the night sky. Installed here over a century ago in 1912, this telescope was operational until the mid 1990s.

In the third part of the tour, visitors were invited to presentations on various topics in the Planetarium Hall, as well as to attend a series of children's workshops. These workshops featured activities and practical observation tips provided by our partners at Spaceclub and SARM.

Finally, the tour concluded with a walk through the courtyard. Here, visitors looked at the Sun through a solar telescope, participated at experiments on magnetic fields, and admired the historic architecture of the Bosianu House.

Over 150 enthusiasts of all ages visited us this year. We were delighted to host them, share insights into Universe exploration, and offer guidance on pursuing a career in the fascinating field of astronomy. The event was also covered in detail on SARM's TV show "Noi și Cerul" (The Sky and Us), which can be watched on Columna TV local television or online via SARM's social media. If you could not make it this year, we look forward to welcoming you next year. We wish you great success and clear skies!

Dr Ruxandra Toma, Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy, www.astro.ro

Astronomical Institute at Astrofest 2026. From Low Earth Orbit to traces of cosmic matter

At AstroFest 2026, the outreach team of the Astronomical Institute offered the public an introduction to one of the most dynamic regions of near-Earth space - Low Earth Orbit, known as LEO.

Starting from the presentation dedicated to this topic, delivered on the event stage by our colleague Cristian Omăt, we discussed the increasingly rapid densification of the space in Earth’s immediate vicinity. LEO hosts commercial satellite constellations, scientific missions, observation satellites, telecommunications, remote sensing, and Earth monitoring systems. The data presented highlighted the scale of the phenomenon, as thousands of satellites are already operational, while thousands more are inactive satellites.

This topic is important for the work of the Astronomical Institute because the study of LEO involves the continuous development of know-how and advanced technologies for identifying and interpreting objects moving across the sky. In this context, at the Astronomical Institute’s stand at Astrofest 2025, visitors asked us how we track space objects, what role optical instruments play, and why understanding the environment around Earth is important.

To connect the theoretical information with direct experience, we presented an all-sky camera as a concrete example of an instrument used in astronomical observations. Alongside it, asteroid prints correlated with meteorite fragments completed the story of objects orbiting Earth, small bodies of the Solar System, and cosmic material that has reached the terrestrial surface. Thus, visitors to the IAAR stand were able to gain a better understanding of both Earth’s place in the Solar System and the characteristics of these types of space objects.

Through other specialized instruments of AIRA, the public was able to gain a reference point for direct eyepiece observations, ranging from very nearby objects to cosmic bodies such as our neighboring star, the Sun.

The Franco-Romanian Workshop "GEO-PLANETO SCIENCES & FORMATION" in Bucharest

On June 15, 2026, the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy hosted the international bilateral workshop "GEO-PLANETO SCIENCES & FORMATION", dedicated to strengthening cooperation in the fields of geosciences and planetology, as well as training tomorrow's talents in research.

The event, held at the headquarters at 5 Cutitul de Argint Street, brought together researchers, academics, and representatives of space and diplomatic institutions from both countries, marking a new step forward in the development of traditional Franco-Romanian partnerships in research and training.

The program included presentations on the research activities and infrastructures of the following organizations: the Observatoire de Physique du Globe de Clermont-Ferrand, Université Clermont Auvergne, the French Space Agency (CNES), the Embassy of France in Romania, the Geological Institute of Romania, the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy (AIRA), the Institute of Geodynamics "Sabba S. Ștefănescu" of the Romanian Academy, and the Romanian Space Agency (ROSA).

The scientific sessions addressed topics such as planetary dynamics and physics, the new geochemical and isotopic facilities at the University of Bucharest, the modeling of the volcanic structures of the Gurghiu Mountains, and magmatism in the Carpathian-Pannonian region.

Discussions regarding future cooperation highlighted several common research directions:

• the comparison between the Carpathian volcanic regions and those of the French Massif Central;
• comparative volcanology within the Solar System, with a focus on Mars and Venus;
• the study of the geodynamics of the Vrancea seismic zone through gravimetric analysis;
• the use of spectrometry for the study of planetary compositions, exospheres, and exoplanets.

The workshop paid special attention to the training of students and young researchers through the development of joint training programs, internships, and access to advanced experimental techniques in petrology, geochemistry, and planetology.

Training young talents together through major space missions is an essential investment for the scientific future of our two countries and of Europe, stated Mioara Mandea, Deputy Director of the Scientific Coordination Department of the Strategy Directorate at the French Space Agency.

Astronomy, planetology, geophysics, are interdisciplinary sciences with an extremely important fundamental and applicative research potential, which must be considered a priority in Romania, in a conscious effort to integrate Romanian researchers into the European research strategy, emphasized Mirel Birlan, Director of the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy.

The event concluded with a tour of the historical and scientific complex of the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy.

Asteroid Day - Open Day at the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy

On June 26, 2026, between 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM, the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy invites you to the event: ASTEROID DAY - OPEN DAY. Address: 5 Cuțitul de Argint Street, District 4, Bucharest.

Public access to this event is free of charge and requires prior registration by email at astro@astro.ro or by phone at 021 335 68 92, by providing the first and last names of the people who will attend and the time at which they wish to come. Subject to availability, each visitor will be assigned a time slot for attending this event.

Activities:

Presentations in the field of astronomy in the Planetarium Hall - Visits to the museum spaces in the Meridian Hall and the Equatorial Dome - Solar observations through astronomical instruments equipped with professional filters - Tour of the scientific and educational park of the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy.