If you're an undergraduate or postgraduate student at a UK university, you could win £200 – and maybe see your work in print. All you have to do is enter the RAS Science Writing Competition. Competitors are to imagine that they are working as science journalists, and write an original illustrated article on any topic in astronomy and geophysics.

The article can be up to 2000 words long, and should be in a style suitable for a popular science magazine or broadsheet newspaper. In other words, the article is to be aimed at readers who are interested in science but have no special technical knowledge.

The next submission deadline on 31 July, is approaching fast, although the competition runs with deadlines of 31 January and 31 July each year.

To be eligible, competitors must be registered for a UK degree, full-time or part-time, on the day they submit their entry. In each six-month period, a first prize of £200 and two second prizes of £50 will be awarded if entries of sufficient merit are received. Winning entries will be published on the RAS website and considered for publication in Astronomy & Geophysics. The competition is organized by the Education Committee of the RAS. For full details and the rules, see www.ras.org.uk.

As part of the £1.25 million awarded annually in Philip Leverhulme Prizes, the Leverhulme Trust wishes to give £50000 each to five researchers in the field of Earth, ocean and atmospheric sciences. Winners will be outstanding scholars whose work has already received international recognition, working in a UK institution of higher education or research, and will normally be under 36 on the closing date. The awards are also open to older researchers who have had a career break or change.

The award is to enhance the prize-holder's research and lasts for two years. It can be used in any way that furthers the holder's research, apart from enhancement of the prize-holder's salary, purchase of capital items and equipment, or for institutional overheads. Full details of how to apply and application forms to download are available on the Leverhulme Trust website at www.leverhulme.org.uk/grants_awards/grants/philip_leverhulme_prizes/.

Philip Leverhulme was the grandson of the founder of the Leverhulme Trust and the prizes awarded in his name commemorate his work for the Trust. Details of last year's awards in the field of astronomy and astrophysics were given in A&G 2003 44 6.7.

Images are the lifeblood of modern science, and nowhere more than in astronomy and geophysics. You only have to listen to the language we use –“see the whole picture”, “get an overview”, “look a bit deeper”– to realize how much the process of science is tied up with seeing patterns and images. The Novartis and Daily Telegraph Visions of Science Photographic Awards recognize both the importance of the scientific vision and the sheer beauty of so many scientific images, and the 2004 competition is now open.

First prize is £1000 and second prize £400, in each of the five main categories: Action, Close-up, People, Concepts and Art.

Entries should grab attention and give some new insight into the world of science and the workings of Nature. They may show something never seen before, explain a scientific phenomenon, illustrate scientific data or it may simply be an image that shows the beauty of science.

This year there are three special awards too. New for 2004 is the Scientists at Work Award, sponsored by NESTA (the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts). Here they are looking for images that challenge the perceptions of how and where scientists carry out research. The Medicine and Life Award, sponsored by the British Medical Journal is open to all photographers and is looking for images that portray disease, diagnostic techniques and treatment. And finally there is the Young Photographer Award, once again sponsored by NESTA Learning Programme and Kodak.

Go to the website to download entry forms and read full details: www.visions-of-science.co.uk.

The F A Paneth Meteorite Trust was set up “to encourage and further research concerned with meteorites” with funds from the late Prof. F A Paneth. The RAS administers this trust and invites applications for projects in meteoritics, from institutions or individuals. The Society wishes to fund several vacation internships, each up to £2000. Funds can cover travel, subsistence and field-work.

Applications are accepted from institutions in Europe (defined as the European Union and Associated Member States, Members of the European Economic Area and enlargement applicants) or from individuals in association with a named institution. Successful institutions will appoint suitable candidates (undergraduates or the equivalent) of any nationality.

The closing date for applications is 7 May 2004; recipients will be notified in June 2004. See the RAS website for details (www.ras.org.uk/html/ras_paneth.html).

This year we celebrate the Transit of Venus across the face of the Sun, first observed in 1639 in Lancashire. We invite school pupils to create a newspaper or a feature article to discuss anything about Venus, from its ancient mythology to the present day science.

The competition this year has two sections: the Newspaper Competition for ages 7–11 and 11–14 years, and the Feature Article Competition for ages 14–16 and 16–19 years. Groups or committed individuals may enter, but based on past experience, we strongly recommend that the Newspaper Competition be undertaken by groups of pupils.

The competition is organized by the Education Committee of the RAS. The closing date is 10 September 2004. But before starting work, we strongly recommend that you consult the full competition rules, available at www.ras.org.uk/html/ras_edcom1.html, or email Alan_C_Pickwick@btinternet.com.

Teachers may like to know that this highly successful interdisciplinary competition has been running for seven years. It is an excellent opportunity to forge cross-curricular links and to use the internet and your library to search for material. Previous winners in all categories can be seen on the RAS website at www.ras.org.uk/html/education/edcomm2.html#comp2001.

Get the picture?

It's hard to imagine science – especially astronomy and geophysics – without pictures. Images show patterns, highlight anomalies and aid comparisons. A striking image can boost research impact, both among the community and in the wider world. Beauty and utility combine in the spectacular images from Mars Express highlighted in this issue. The detail in these images is mouthwatering and raises pointers for continuing research into the evolution of the martian landscape. But it also raises the question, discussed elsewhere in this issue, of whether we should send people to Mars, or concentrate on developing robots? It's a timely question and I look forward to hearing your views.

The European Association for Astronomy Education is holding its eighth summer school for secondary teachers from 19 to 24 July 2004 at De Glind near Utrecht in Holland. Around 60 teachers from across Europe will attend general lectures, working groups, workshops and observational sessions on astronomy. The event is not aimed at experts and the presentations will be in English.

This is an excellent opportunity for teachers with an interest in and responsibility for teaching astronomy to find out what approaches are used across Europe, and to meet and share ideas with others in the discipline.

The closing date for registration is 30 April and the approximate cost of registration and accommodation is ¢745. British Council support may be available. Contact Alan_C_Pickwick@btinternet.com (or 0161 973 6796) as soon as possible.

A new topographic data set of most of Europe, Asia and numerous islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans has been released by NASA and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Gathered in just 10 days during the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission in February 2000, the new digital elevation data set covers roughly 80% of the Earth's land mass. The resolution of the data is three arc seconds, equivalent to about 90m.

John LaBrecque, manager of NASA's Solid Earth and Natural Hazards Program, said: “The shape of Earth's surface affects nearly every natural process and human endeavour. Precise, uniform 3-D elevation data are needed for a wide range of applications from studying earthquakes, volcanism, floods and other natural hazards, to planning development, managing precious water resources, and ensuring the safety of aircraft navigation.”

Elevation data used in this image was acquired by the SRTM aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour. SRTM used the same radar instrument that comprised the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) that flew twice on the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1994. SRTM was designed to collect 3-D measurements of the Earth's surface. The mission is a cooperative project between NASA, NGA and the German and Italian space agencies (www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/).