The lecture is part of the popular science lecture series titled ‘Science Matters’, which aims to bring about awareness among students, parents, teachers and the media about the fascinating world of basic sciences and its promising future.

The series deals with topics on frontier areas of science and technology for spreading new knowledge and awareness among the students and the public at large.

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) and UNESCO have announced to celebrate the year 2009 as the International Year of Astronomy (IYA 2009) with the central theme

‘The Universe, yours to discover’. Dr Narottam Sahoo, a senior scientist at the Gujarat Science City, said: “The 2009 sky is providing some exciting events, including the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, which will occur on July 22, 2009 and last for 6 minutes 39 seconds over a narrow corridor through countries like India, Bangladesh and China.”

He added: “A strong shower of Leonid meteors is also expected in mid-November 2009, with forecasts predicting upwards of an incredible 500 shooting stars per hour.”