From International Astronautical Federation

Interview with Luboš Perek

Professor Luboš Perek is a Czech astronomer.

He graduated from Masaryk University, Brno, in 1946, earned his PhD in Astronomy Charles University, Prague, in 1956, and a DSc in Astronomy in 1961.

He has worked on the distribution of mass in the galaxy, high-velocity stars, planetary nebulae, definition of outer space, geostationary orbit, space debris, management of outer space. The asteroid 2900 Luboš Perek was named after him.

He introduced the problem of space debris to the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) in 1979. In 1982 he presented the first paper on Traffic Rules for Outer Space. In 1998 he initiated a new trend in the UN discussion of the geostationary orbit.

With an important support by Ciro A. Arevalo Yepes of Colombia the discussion resulted in the adoption by COPUOS of a considered opinion that the geostationary orbit is a part of outer space. That fact had been contested for 26 years, since 1976, hampering the progress of UN discussions.

Dr Perek was President of the International Astronautical Federation between 1980 and 1982 and has also held high positions within the United Nations, the IAA and IISL.

Dr Perek, you are reknowned worldwide for your work in astronomy but you have wide-ranging interests from space law to astronautics. What first interested you in space?

When I was appointed Chief of the Outer Space Division back in 1975, I had to make myself familiar with the agenda of the COPUOS and its Subcommitties. The first surprise was that there was no agreement on where outer space begins. To me the problem seemed simple: Outer space starts at the elevation where space objects can fly. At approximately 100 km a satellite can fly possibly once around the globe but not much more. Why not adopt that nice rounded off value? Only later I learned that the problem was much less scientific than political. The fact is that there was no political will to adopt a limit at all. If a political will appears, I might write another paper on the subject.

You are well-known for your Catalogue of Galactic Planetary Nebulae produced with Luboš Kohoutek in 1967 and for work with the International Astronomical Union (IAU). How has astronomy changed over the years?

Astronomy has changed enormously. When I was a student, the far side of the Moon was something that nobody can see. Today, everybody can get a detailed map of the far side and there are plans to locate radio observatories on the far side, out of reach of TV , of e-mail, of YouTube and other benefits.

You were the President of the IAF in the early 1980s - a time when international cooperation in space was in its infancy. How important is cooperation in astronautics to the discipline of astronomy?

International cooperation has been a favourite topic in astronomy for centuries. Just as an example - around 1600, a German astronomer met a Danish astronomer in Prague and maintained lively correspondence with an Italian astronomer on a proposal for the true nature of the solar system elaborated by a Polish astronomer. And the result was put into an elegant mathematical form by an English astronomer. International cooperation is a must for astronomy as well as for astronautics.

A Czech, Vladimir Remek, was the first non-Soviet/non-American in space. The 2006 IAU meeting in Prague redefined the classification of objects in the Solar System such as Pluto. Which have been the major Czech contributions to space knowledge?

In my opinion, important Czech contributions to space knowledge are the following:

• A series of five satellites Magion launched between 1978 and 1996 for studies of the magnetosphere and ionosphere,
• Construction of an Automated Stabilized Platform used on Vega spacecraft and the Mir station,
• Construction of high-temperature furnaces for materials research,
• Becoming a full member of ESA in 2008 and participating in its programmes,
• Construction of a sensitive micro-accelerometer for studies of non-gravitational forces acting on a satellite,
• Construction of several laser telescopes for determining accurate satellite orbits of satellites equipped with corner reflectors,
• Two Earth-bound items for preserving and disseminating knowledge: Space Science Dictionary in six languages (1990-1993) on over 3000 pages and an online Space Encyclopedia listing a multitude of data on all space objects at www.lib.cas.cz/space.40.

This year's 61st International Astronautical Congress will be held in the Czech capital. What can visitors to the IAC 2010 expect?

Visitors to the IAC 2010 can expect a congress under one roof, providing some 153 technical sessions, eight Plenaries, three Highlight lectures, several Late Breaking News, all carefully prepared by the 400 members of the International Program Committee of the IAF. Many colleagues remember the IAC 1977 in Prague and its prominent participants Arthur Clark, Stark Draper and Eugene Pepin, to name just three. Visitors to IAC 2010 can expect a beautiful city, more colourful than in 1977, but the same friendly atmosphere, and an incomparably richer congress menu.