AAS Electronic Announcement #148 -- April 2005

[Mailed from aas.org at 3:10pm 11 April 2005]

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CONTENTS

1. AAS WASHINGTON DC MEETING SPECIAL SESSION PROPOSALS DEADLINE
2. VISA PROCESSING

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 1. AAS WASHINGTON DC MEETING SPECIAL SESSION PROPOSALS DEADLINE

Proposals for Special Sessions for the Washington DC Meeting are due in the EO by 15 May 2005. See http://www.aas.org/meetings/MeetingContent.html#how for information.

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2. VISA PROCESSING

The availability of visas for scientist and students to visit the United States for conferences, research, and study has been a matter of concern for the past several years. The situation has steadily improved after a major deterioration after the events of 11 September 2001. The Department of State has recently indicated that the processing for Visa Mantis applications has reduced to an average of fourteen days and that for academic programs the validity of a clearance has been extended from two to four years. However, there are still likely to be problems from time to time, or location to location and we would be most interested in hearing of any cases where astronomical researchers or students encountered difficulty in obtaining a visa to visit the United States for professional activities. Please send such information to Kevin Marvel (marvel@aas.org).

There is a GAO report at http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-198 which contains a full evaluation of the program.

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