AU Seminars
Queen Mary University of London
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Academic Year 2026/27 — Friday Programme
For Group Organisers
Our seminars are intended to serve the whole Astronomy Unit, so we generally aim for more senior researchers — people who can offer a broad perspective on a field rather than a single paper or highly focused result. That said, there are always exceptions: junior researchers who have produced genuinely exciting work are very welcome, and quality of science and communication should always come first.
Please be mindful of our budget constraints when inviting speakers from further afield. Our budget does not typically cover international flights, so speakers based in the UK or within easy travelling distance should be the priority. Groups are encouraged to invite visitors whose travel costs are already covered by other means — this is an excellent way to make the most of the budget. If you believe there is a strong case for inviting someone from abroad at the AU’s expense, please discuss this with your group contact before extending an invitation.
We actively encourage groups to look beyond their own immediate research area. When assembling the programme, please also be mindful of our Athena SWAN commitments: maintaining gender balance across the seminar series is something the unit takes seriously, and it should be a factor in who you consider inviting.
The seminar schedule for the academic year is shown in the calendar below. Seminars take place on Fridays during term time, with the second Friday of each month kept free for Royal Astronomical Society meetings in London — these slots will not appear in the schedule.
The remaining Fridays are divided between the three research groups — Plasma, Planets, and Cosmology — rotating across the year. Each group is responsible for filling its own allocated slots. The calendar shows which slots are unfilled, provisionally booked, or confirmed, and which group each belongs to, so you can quickly see what is available for your group.
If your group’s assigned slot does not work for the speaker you have in mind, you can request a swap with another group using the form further down this page. Fill in your slot and the target slot and a draft email will be generated to the relevant group contact, with the seminar organiser CC’d.
When inviting a speaker, please pass on the following requests:
For speakers travelling significant distances, the AU budget can cover one night’s accommodation on campus via Academic Lets. If you think this applies, ask the speaker whether they would like to arrange this. If so, email academiclets@qmul.ac.uk to arrange it — there is a draft email in the workflow steps below.
For speakers making the journey on the day, we also offer a subsidised pub lunch at 12:30 before the seminar. Speaker costs are covered in full; AU students may claim up to £10 and postdocs up to £15. The host is responsible for covering these costs on the day and claiming them back — see the hosting duties step below for details.
Travel expenses are reimbursed by the university using budget code SPC4005B. The logistics email draft includes full instructions and a link to the expense claim form.
Once or twice a year we aim to invite a speaker from outside astronomy — particularly people working in industry who apply skills or knowledge developed in a research context to different problems. These talks offer a valuable perspective on career paths beyond academia and broaden the range of the programme. An in-reach seminar can fill any available slot in the schedule.
If you have someone in mind who you think would make a good in-reach speaker, please use the nomination form at the bottom of this page. Nominations can be made anonymously — only the speaker’s name and a brief justification are required. The seminar organiser will follow up with nominees directly.
Send to a potential speaker to gauge interest and available dates.
AVAILABLE DATES (unfilled/provisional slots):
Send once the speaker has confirmed. Covers everything they need to know.
Once a speaker has confirmed, submit their details using the form further down this page. This sends the information to the seminar organiser and updates the schedule.
If the speaker is travelling far and would like to stay overnight, one night’s on-campus accommodation can be arranged through Academic Lets at the AU’s expense.
As the designated host, you are the speaker’s main point of contact for the day. Please make sure you:
After the seminar, claim back any costs you covered (pub lunch, refreshments, etc.) using the AU budget code SPC4005B. There are two ways to do this:
Schedule Overview
Seminars are held on Fridays during term time, excluding the second Friday of each month. Each slot is assigned to one of the three research groups.
Organising a Seminar?
Fill in the details below for your group’s slot. Title and abstract are not needed at this stage — just the speaker, date, and host. Clicking Prepare Email will open your email client with a pre-filled message to the seminar organiser — review and press Send.
Need a Different Slot?
Select the slot you want to offer and the slot you would like in return. An email will be drafted to the nominated contact of the target group, with the seminar organiser CC'd, containing all the relevant dates.
Opens your email client with a pre-filled swap request addressed to the target group's contact.
Open to Everyone
Know someone outside astronomy who would give a compelling talk — a researcher who has moved into industry, a data scientist, an engineer, or anyone applying skills from a research background in a different context? Submit a nomination below. Nominations are confidential and can be made anonymously.
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Nomination received — thank you!
The seminar organiser will be in touch with the nominee if they decide to follow up.
Something went wrong — please try again, or email andrew.winter@qmul.ac.uk directly.
Seminar organiser? Access the admin panel to edit entries and manage contacts.