A joint fund for the Ministry of Science and the commercial-industrial club in which the largest industrial companies in Israel, will award four scholarships every year to doctoral students specializing in the fields relevant to space exploration
A joint fund for the Ministry of Science and the commercial-industrial club in which the largest industrial companies in the country are located, will annually award four scholarships to particularly outstanding doctoral students for an aggregate amount of NIS 192 per scholarship over three years. The scholarship will be given to students specializing in the fields relevant to space exploration - so that they can devote all their time and efforts to research without being bothered by questions of livelihood during their studies. This was announced yesterday by Minister of Science and Technology Roni Bar-On and Acting Director General of the Ministry of Science, Prof. Mina Teicher in their opening remarks at the conference "Space and Science in Israel 2006" held by the Ministry of Science in cooperation with the Fisher Institute, the Israel Space Agency and the Office of the Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
"The Israeli Space Agency Col. Ilan Ramon Scholarships", which will be distributed every year starting in 2006. The first four scholarships, amounting to NIS 64 per year (for three years), will be jointly funded by the Industrial-Commercial Club and aim to support outstanding PhD students (and paid as part of a post-doctorate) in the field of space exploration. The program is open to students from all fields involved in space exploration, such as aeronautical engineering, microelectronics, electro-optics, applied physics, astrophysics, applied mathematics and computer science.
Rona Ramon commented on this at a press conference held during the conference: "Many initiatives were established and carried out during these three years regarding the commemoration of Ilan. The family together with close friends decided on a guideline regarding education. And to my delight, this is the third year that astronauts from NASA have accompanied me during this difficult time. We are meeting this week with as many students as possible. Today we will also go to the Schneider Hospital to give reinforcement and inspiration to the children to learn, explore and realize the potential that exists in them. In addition, I always think of Ilan as a private person, who in terms of his personality had a lot of love for his family and the wider circle - a lot of love for the State of Israel. You all know about air history and the way he represented us in space was good. We are starting a project at Mitzpe Ramon where we can get to know Ilan's character and through his personality he will take us on a journey from the love of nature and the land to the flight into space."
As for the ministry's announcement about the distribution of scholarships to outstanding people, Ramon said: "The scholarships are the highlight, if we are talking about a living commemoration, because those who receive the scholarship will remember even in twenty years who the man is and what he did. "
As for the conference held at the Air Force Base, Ramon said: "This conference will become a tradition and I hope it will bring Israel to scientific achievements."
The conference was full of speakers and there was also a panel with the participation of three astronauts who took part in the Columbia shuttle flight. We hope to bring the transcript of the panel - depending on the quality of the recording.
