Scifest Africa 2014: 'Into the space!'
Scifest Africa, South Africa’s National Science Festival, will lift off in Grahamstown on 12 March 2014, taking visitors on a week-long, action packed adventure into the great unknown.
Sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Scifest Africa remains the largest festival of its kind on the African continent, welcoming over 65,000 visitors of all ages to Grahamstown in 2013.
The festival will also host three parallel festivals during Scifest Africa 2014, namely the iRhini Township Festival, Scikids and Scifest Africa at Nelson Mandela Bay Science Centre, Uitenhage.
Celebrating the theme “Into the space!”, the 2014 festival programme will offer visitors over 500 events that will explore spaces big and small, such as anatomy and the brain, astronomy, the atmosphere, architecture, biotechnology, the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Space Agency, geographical regions, nanotechnology, psychology, underground and underwater exploration, space sciences, the SKA, the universe, and any other space you can think of, including good old parking spaces!
A sure highlight will be appearances by National Geographic Emerging Explorer, Barrington Irving Jr, the youngest and first black person to fly solo around the world.
From humble beginnings in Miami’s inner city, Irving turned down a full football scholarship to the University of Florida to complete a degree in Aeronautical Science at the Florida Memorial University, where he also earned his private, commercial pilot, and certified flight instructor licenses.
In 2005 Barrington founded a non-profit company, Experience Aviation Inc., which introduces the youth to careers in aviation and aerospace.
Scifest Africa Director, Anja Fourie, says the theme was selected in support of celebrations to mark the installation of the first of 64 radio telescope dishes in Carnarvon, Northern Cape that will make up meerKAT, the precursor to the Square Kilometre Array telescope.
“South Africa’s geographical advantages, infrastructure and human capital have allowed our country to become a place of major significance in the practice of astronomy and space sciences, and we look forward to showing off African astronomy and space sciences at the festival.”
The festival programme will see the return of popular events such as the DST Laser Show, Kids Dig, Rhodes University Green Fund Run and Soap Box Derby, but will also feature several new events including a Paper Aeroplane Competition, Science in the Park, and Science Slam sponsored by the German Embassy in South Africa.
Contact:
Joy Matambo
Tel: (046) 603 1166
Email: media@scifest.org.za
