Astronomy academics from across the UK picked up their bows and arrows to take part in an archery event at this year’s National Astronomy Meeting (NAM).
The NAM, held annually by the Royal Astronomical Society in partnership with the University of Nottingham, is a five-day event, and attracts more than 500 astronomy academics from across the country. This year, NAM included a series of talks on a number of topics, from planets to cosmology.
On the third day of the conference (29 June) the academics had opportunity to take part in an archery event, hosted by East Midlands outdoor activity centre Adrenalin Jungle. The event combined traditional archery with the popular new sport, combat archery.
Dr Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, said: “NAM is a key date in the calendar for the field of astronomy. Academics come from far and wide to hear talks from inspiring speakers. This year were inspiring talks from Isobel Hook, Haley Gomez, Joop Schaye, Don Pollacco, Mark Swinbank and Michele Dougherty.
“We always try to organise something a bit different as a social activity and we’ve had so much interest for combat archery – almost 90 people took part. It’s great to do something with a bit of friendly competition it really adds something special to the conference and helps build relationships in the astronomy community.”
Adrenalin Jungle is the first activity centre in the East Midlands to provide combat archery. Don Logan, owner of Adrenalin Jungle said: “We’ve seen a huge increase in interest in combat archery recently. It’s becoming quite a popular sport – I think people really enjoy firing arrows at their friends instead of targets.
“Combat archery is a bit like paintball or laser tag because it pitches team against team with the objective being to eliminate your opponent from the field of play to gain an advantage. Don’t worry we use special arrows, with rubber tips, designed to not hurt people.
“At Adrenalin Jungle we offer combat archery as part of our ‘Hunter Games’ package which is great for groups of eight and more. The package includes a session of archery, to get everyone practising their technique followed by a session of the ever popular axe throwing and finally an intense session of combat archery.”
The Hunter Games is a two hour activity and costing £40 per person, with a minimum group size of eight but is available for larger groups. To find out more about the Hunter Games or to book any activities at Adrenalin Jungle please visit the websitehttp://www.adrenalinjungle.com/ or call 01623 883 980.
