The night brought together three remarkable speakers, all solar and heliophysics experts with a talent for making cosmic extremes feel close to home.
Shadia Rifai Habbal, Professor at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa and participant in the concurrent ISSI Workshop on Solar Eclipses, opened the scientific programme. Despite a full day of research discussions, she delivered a captivating talk about her decades-long quest to study the solar corona through total solar eclipses. Her stories, from remote expeditions to the delicate art of timing and technique, transported the audience across continents and into the Moon’s fleeting shadow.
Next up, Lucia Kleint, Professor at the University of Bern, turned the spotlight on the Sun’s more explosive moods. She introduced her work on solar flares, magnetic fields, and what these violent outbursts mean for aurora visibility here in Switzerland. Her approach to public communication resonated strongly, especially as solar activity returns to the headlines and the night sky.
The evening’s final scientific detour came from André Galli, Senior Scientist at the University of Bern, who guided the audience far beyond the orbits of the planets to the outer heliosphere: the immense bubble carved out by the solar wind. In one of space science’s livelier debates, he revisited the ongoing question: Is the heliosphere shaped like a croissant? – His Swiss verdict? Something between a croissant, a trilobite, and a sphere — an answer as entertaining as it was illuminating.
Interspersed between the talks were short breaks, lively conversations, and a spirited quiz by Hugh Osborn that kept the room buzzing. Some ISSI workshop participants joined the crowd, adding to the mix of students, researchers, and the simply curious.
To start the evening, Fabio Crameri, ISSI’s Communication Scientist, took the stage for a playful but heartfelt introduction to the institute. He polled the room: “Who has heard of ISSI? Drinks up!” before outlining ISSI’s mission: quietly but effectively enabling international collaboration in space science for 30 years. Now, 100 additional people know about it.
This somewhat unusual outreach effort is possible thanks to the organisers: a highly committed and capable team of early-career scientists from the University of Bern, as well as Stellwerk with their warm, lively setting.
ISSI is delighted to have, for the first time, supported this Astronomy on Tap event in Bern. It helps to bring world-class space science from the research bench to the bar table. Judging by the enthusiasm in the room, it will not be the last. Cheers to many more nights where science and community meet under one roof, and under one star. 🌞✨
