10 April 2018
Laxenburg, Austria

Special Lecture: Meteorite impact and airbursts as a natural hazard

Professor Dr. Christian Köberl Director General of the Natural History Museum of Vienna and Deputy Head of the Department of Lithospheric Research at the University of Vienna will give a special lecture at IIASA highlighting why meteorite impact and airbursts need to be taken seriously as natural hazards.

© Natural History Museum Vienna

© Natural History Museum Vienna

Köberl will provide insight into why it is the explosion of small bodies in the atmosphere that probably constitute the most severe danger to humankind, potentially generating explosions of enormous energy and causing thousands to hundreds of thousands of deaths. The lecture will be followed by discussion and an opportunity for attendees to ask questions.

Date: Tuesday, 10 April, 16:00

Venue: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.


Program

16:00 Welcome by IIASA Director General and CEO Pavel Kabat

16:10 Lecture by Christian Köberl

17:00 Q & A and Discussion

17:30 Reception/Drinks

To register for this event please email: by 6 April 2018

Lecture: Meteorite impact and airbursts as a natural hazard


Impacts of extraterrestrial bodies are among the most spectacular, high-energy geological processes on Earth. Of particular interest are the effects and dangers of typical impact events for the geological and biological evolution of the Earth. For example, a huge impact, 65 million years ago, marking the end of the Cretaceous, had a catastrophic influence on the biosphere.

The Natural History Museum Vienna

The museum is home to world-famous and unique objects, such as the 29,500-year-old Venus of Willendorf, the Steller’s sea cow that became extinct over 200 years ago, and enormous dinosaur skeletons. Further highlights in the 39 exhibit halls include the world’s largest and oldest public collection of meteorites, including the spectacular “Tissint” meteorite from Mars, as well as the permanent anthropological exhibition on the origins and development of humans, and the new prehistoric exhibition with the Venus Cabinet and the Gold Cabinet. On the occasion of the museum’s 125th anniversary a new Digital Planetarium opened, featuring full dome projection technology that gives visitors the chance to embark on virtual journeys in scientific detail to the edge of the Milky Way galaxy or Saturn’s rings. The museum’s departments are home to around 60 scientists carrying out fundamental research in a wide range of fields related to earth sciences, life sciences and human sciences. This makes the museum an important public institution and one of the largest non-university research centers in Austria.



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Last edited: 29 March 2018

International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
Schlossplatz 1, A-2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Phone: (+43 2236) 807 0 Fax:(+43 2236) 71 313