Later this summer (26th -30th July), the 73rd Annual Meeting of The Meteoritical Society will take place in New York. This is certainly the single most important scientific meeting for discussion of new research results on space rocks. The programme for the event has just been announced. So later today, at our weekly meteorite research group meeting, we will collectively be taking a good look at the highlights of this forthcoming event.
There are several reasons for undertaking this sort of exercise. As a group, we need to keep up-to-date with developments that have a direct implication for our own research. But perhaps, more importantly, we also need to make sure we are keeping ourselves well-informed about what is going on in the field as a whole. You just never know when something that appears to be a bit obscure turns out to have important implications for your own work.
Of course, scientific meetings are not just about announcing new results. They are a chance for people to make contact, put a face to a name and plan future collaborations. MetSoc, as it is commonly referred to, is hard work in the weeks before the conference yes, but also a lot of fun too.
Meteorites: The Blog from the Final Frontier 