-3,500 experts from 60 countries participated
-9 days information sharing and corporate exchange
-Film festival and invitation event for scientists
The’International Space Research Committee’ (hereinafter referred to as COSPAR), the largest academic event in the field of space research, called the’Space Olympics’, will be held in Busan in 2024.
Busan City announced on the 4th that at the 43rd COSPAR General Assembly, which ended in Sydney, Australia, that Busan has been finalized as the venue for the 45th General Assembly, beating Shanghai, China. This is the first time that Korea has hosted the COSPAR General Assembly, and the 45th General Assembly will be held in BEXCO, Haeundae-gu, for 9 days from July 13 to 21, 2024.
COSPAR is a special research committee affiliated with the International Scientific Association under UNESCO, established in 1958. It has 44 member states, 13 international academic organizations, and 9,000 researchers who carry out research with space infrastructure as members. In Korea, the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Astronomical Research Institute are active members. The general meeting, held every two years in a continental cycle, will host more than 4000 academic presentations related to space science and exploration. The heads of space agencies such as NASA and other countries will attend to discuss the development of world space research and international cooperation policies. The participation of world-class aerospace companies such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Airbus is expected to serve as an opportunity for the expansion of the domestic space ecosystem.
The city started its activities to attract COSPAR general meeting by submitting a proposal in 2019 in cooperation with Busan Tourism Organization and BEXCO. Busan was finally selected by competing in Korea with Seoul, Daejeon, and Jeju, and after that, it formed an invitation team and challenged to host a general meeting with the Korean Committee of COSPAR, which is composed of domestic space science experts. The 3rd COSPAR Symposium was successfully held in Jeju in 2017, with 350 participants from 38 countries.
The COSPAR general meeting held in Busan will be held under the theme of’Team Spirit in Space Research’. In addition to academic presentations and policy cooperation, various public events such as ▷invited lectures related to space research, ▷space film festival, and meeting with space scientists are also held. About 3,500 people (3,000 foreigners) from 60 countries are expected to participate in the general meeting. The hosting of this COSPAR general meeting is expected to become a venue for promoting local economy, promoting research achievements in Korea’s space science field, promoting academic exchange, and promoting new cooperation with global space companies.
Mayor Lee Byeong-jin said, “The COSPAR General Assembly is a great opportunity to inform the world’s astronomy and space researcher and officials of space organizations around the world about’Busan, a city centered on science and technology’, and it will be an opportunity to raise the status of Busan as an international tourism city.” .
Reporter Jung Cheol-wook