Geometric Foundations of Gravity 2023

Venue

Institute of Physics

The venue of the conference will be the new building of the Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, inaugurated in 2014 and remaining one of the most modern physics buildings in Eastern Europe.

Together with the technology, chemistry and biomedical institutes it is situated at the natural science campus, which is about 10 min by bus or 30 min walk from the historical center of Tartu. See the location on the map:

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Tartu

Tartu is the second largest city of Estonia and is often called the "intellectual capital" of Estonia. Around 20% of the population are students, which makes Tartu as well the student capital of Estonia. Most of them attend the University of Tartu, which was founded in 1632, and is now a leading research university, ranking highest in the New Europe.

Information related to tourism and sightseeing in and around Tartu can be found at the Visit Tartu and Visit Estonia portals, while many cultural events are listed at the Window of Culture. One can also enjoy a virtual tour of the city.

Tartu University - panoramio (1) Tartu vanalinn
Tartu Raekoja plats Tartu Ülikooli Ajaloo Muuseum

Science in Tartu

There is a long history of science and physics in Tartu. It was perhaps the first place where Newton’s Principia was taught in a university course, just a few years after the publication of the seminal book. The astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve pioneered to measure accurately the distance to the nearby star Vega, working with the most powerful telescope of the time at Tartu Observatory. In the beginning of the 20th century Ernst Öpik estimated the distance of the Andromeda Galaxy, thus paving the way for modern cosmology.

Old Observatory, Tartu, April 2012 Old Observatory, Tartu, April 2012