UoA Faculty Members Receive Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology for AY2015

University of Aizu faculty members were selected to receive the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology for AY2015.

This award honors those who have made significant achievements in the field of science and technology and scientific literacy promotion, etc. The purpose of the award is to improve the motivation of people in the field of science and technology, and contribute to improving the level of Japan's science and technology.

The following UoA faculty members received the Scientific Literacy Promotion Division Prize, which is given to groups and individuals who have contributed to the promotion of Japan's scientific literacy, especially amongst its young people and local populations.

The award ceremony will be held at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on Wednesday, April 15, 2015.

Photo from Science Cafe held at Aizu-Bange Town's Satoyama no Atelier Sakamoto Branch School (Taken April 29, 2011, left), Ceremonial photograph (right)

Awarded Achievement "Science Cafe and Lectures for Promoting Deep Space Probe"
As one of the UoA Clusters in 2009, the ARC-Space, ARC-Space:Aizu Research Cluster for Space Science, was established by inviting faculty members experienced in such deep space probe projects as the MUSES-C and KAGUYA (SELENE).

As volunteers, the faculty members in the cluster have put their own efforts on improving public understanding about deep space probe by implementing the Science Cafe, lectures, and commentaries.

After the Great East Japan Earthquake, the cluster members were requested to facilitate indoor workshops for the disaster victims. They proactively dedicated themselves to elementary/junior high school students through the educational collaboration project of the UoA-produced "Akabeko Program" and Okuma Town where town-widely evacuated to Aizu-wakamatsu City. More than 120 lectures have been provided since the foundation of ARC-Space. Their features vary from research achievements of UoA faculty members and students, collaboration with companies and manufactures within Fukushima Prefecture, to lunar planetary science.

They contributed on establishing the "Aizu Sora-no Kai," a community organization to support the "Hayabusa2." Also, they achieved to arouse public interest and understanding in the deep space probe, to courage the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake, and to motivate the youth to learn math-scientific subjects.

• Major Publication: NHK Books no. 1115『最新･月の科学―残された謎を解く』 "Latest Version/Lunar Science - Exploring the Left Mystery" Jun. 2008, Junichi Watanabe, Hirohide Demura･Naru Hirata･ Junya Terazono (Chapters 2-7)
• Major Publication: Sanwa co., ltd. "50 Hayabusa Power Spots" Dec. 2012, Junichiro Kawaguchi (supervising editor), Hayabusa PS Editorial Department (editor), Hirohide Demura (interview contribution, Paragraph 7, pp. 25-28)