The Be Star Newsletter, Volume 40 - September 2009

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IAU Symposium 272: "Active OB stars: structure, evolution, mass loss, and critical limits" C. Neiner GEPI, Observatoire de Paris, CNRS, Université Paris Diderot; 5 place Jules Janssen, 92190 Meudon, France email:  Coralie.Neiner@obspm.fr Received: 3 September 2009 First announcement: Early-type (OB) stars dominate the ecology of the universe as cosmic engines via their extreme output of radiation and matter, not only as supernovae but also during their entire lifetimes with far-reaching consequences. Active OB stars are massive and intermediate-mass stars that display strong variability on various time scales due to such phenomena as mass outflows, rapid rotation, pulsations, magnetism, binarity, radiative instabilities, and the influence of their circumstellar environment. This concerns in particular classical and Herbig Be, Bp, β Cep, Slowly Pulsating B Stars (SPB), B[e] and O stars, as well as massive binaries such as the Be X-ray binaries and those that harbor O-type subdwarf companions. The IAU Symposium 272 will be dedicated to discussion of the structure, evolution, mass loss, and critical limits of active early-type stars, four axes of research that are currently providing important clues about the physics of these objects. We expect that the meeting will allow fruitful exchange by bringing together scientists working in the fields of O stars, B stars, Bp stars, Be stars and Herbig Be stars, at wavelengths that span the electromagnetic spectrum (especially X-ray, UV, optical, and IR) with emphasis on forefront observational techniques (e.g. spectropolarimetry, interferometry, asteroseismology). We thus expect that the meeting will result in further important progress in our understanding of active OB stars and give rise to new projects that will be undertaken in the second decade of the 21st century. The key topics of the IAU Symposium 272 are: the internal structure of active OB stars: pulsations, rotation, magnetism, transport processes their evolution: stellar environment, formation, binaries, late stages (including magnetars and GRBs) their circumstellar environment: disks, magnetospheres, the Be phenomenon, wind, clumping active OB stars as extreme condition test beds: critical rotation, mass loss, radiation fields 'normal' OB stars as calibrators: fundamental parameters, astronomical quantities populations of OB stars: population studies, tracers of galactic structure, cosmic history The IAU Symposium 272 will be held in Paris from July 19 to 23, 2010. Pre-registrations are open at http://iaus272.obspm.fr for those who wish to receive further information. The website also provides details about the Symposium scientific topics and local information. For further inquiries please contact iaus272.info@obspm.fr. The symposium is co-sponsored by the IAU and the Paris Observatory. We are looking forward to seeing you in Paris in 2010! Coralie Neiner, for the SOC