31 October 2018
WASHINGTON, DC — Discover the latest Earth and space science news at the 51st annual AGU Fall Meeting this December, when more than 20,000 attendees from around the globe are expected to assemble for the largest worldwide conference in the Earth and space sciences.
This year, the meeting runs from Monday through Friday, Dec. 10-14, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC 20001.
The National Mall from Lincoln’s memorial.
Credit: Yoga Balaji/Wikimedia Commons
Included in this advisory:
- Hotel reservation information — deadline November 14
- Covering the Fall Meeting webinar November 14 — register now!
- Press field trips and workshop — register now!
- Virtual Press Room and expert tools — coming soon!
- Abstracts and sessions online and searchable
- Press events and preliminary press conference topics
- Press registration information
Please visit the 2018 Fall Meeting Media Center to view previous media advisories that include important information about visas for international reporters and searching the scientific program. For any questions about the Fall Meeting or information included in this advisory, email [email protected].
1. Hotel reservation deadline: November 14
Members of the press can make hotel reservations through the online press registration site. You will need to submit your press registration before booking a hotel room. However, it is not required to wait for press registration approval before booking a hotel room.
Once you have submitted your press registration, you will see a link to add/modify your hotel reservation on the press registration site. An additional link to the housing website is provided in the registration acknowledgement email you will receive after submitting your registration. You can also log back into the press registration site using your email and registration ID to add/modify your hotel reservation. The deadline to book a hotel room at the special AGU room rate is Wednesday, November 14.
More than 20,000 scientists, journalists, educators, and students are expected to attend this year’s meeting and hotels sell out quickly. Please consider booking a hotel room now to take advantage of the preferential rates. There are more than 60 hotel choices included in the registration form and rates start as low as $169.00 per day, plus tax. The special AGU room rates are subject to availability after the November 14 deadline.
Please visit the Fall Meeting housing page to see a list of hotels offering the special AGU room rate, as well as their rates and locations. However, press must register and book housing via the press registration site, and not from the Fall Meeting housing page. Please use this page as a reference only.
2. Covering the fall meeting webinar (Nov. 14)
Attending your first AGU Fall Meeting and don’t know where to start? Want a refresher on how the meeting works and tips for reporting from the conference? Whether you’re covering a scientific meeting for the first time or just haven’t been to the Fall Meeting before, AGU’s public information office and freelance journalist Katherine Kornei will let you in on their secrets for navigating the largest gathering of Earth and space scientists during a webinar on Wednesday, November 14 from 2:00 – 3:00 pm EST. The webinar is free, but registration is required. Register here.
3. Press field trips and workshop
AGU is hosting a field trip for members of the media on Sunday, 9 December. NASA will also be holding a press workshop on Sunday, 9 December, and a field trip on Thursday, 13 December. Pre-registration for the workshop and field trips is required.
Press Field Trip: Community Environmental Justice in Brandywine, Maryland
Sunday, 9 December, 1:00-5:00 PM
Hosted by AGU, BTB Coalition and local partners
Journalists will learn about how scientists and community members are working together to collect data on air quality in Brandywine and advocate for health in an unincorporated area that has no formal local government. On the tour, led by AGU partner Brandywine | TB Southern Region Neighborhood Coalition (the BTB Coalition), participants will see a power plant and other sites affecting the community and hear from community residents, local activists and scientists. The field trip will depart from and return to the Washington Convention Center. Space for this free tour is limited and priority will be given to members of the media. Click for details.
Reporters can register for the AGU field trip here. All reporters planning to attend the field trip MUST pre-register; no on-site registrations will be accepted.
Questions: email Nanci Bompey at [email protected].
Press workshop: Everything you’ve always wanted to know about near-Earth objects and planetary defense
Sunday, 9 December, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Sponsored by NASA
In this three-hour workshop hosted by NASA, experts will report on the methods and status of finding, tracking, and characterizing near-Earth objects (NEOs) and planning for planetary defense. Plenty of time will be provided for questions and discussion. The workshop, held at the Fall Meeting conference venue, is free and a box lunch will be provided. Space for the workshop is limited and priority will be given to members of the media. Click for details.
Reporters can register for the NASA workshop here. All reporters planning to attend the workshop MUST preregister; no on-site registrations will be accepted. Registration to the AGU Fall Meeting is not required.
Questions: Email [email protected]
Press field trip: NASA’s next frontiers
Thursday, 13 Dec. 2018, 1:00–4:00 PM
Hosted by NASA
Visit the research labs, satellite operations centers, and the facilities where spacecraft are designed, built, and tested at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, one of the space agency’s primary science hubs – and one of the only institutions in the world able to support the whole life cycle of a space science mission from conception to manufacture to data analysis. Space for this free tour is currently limited to 20 spots and priority will be given to members of the media. Click for details. Field trip attendees MUST be registered as press for the 2018 AGU Fall Meeting to attend. However, it is not necessary to wait for your press credentials to be approved to register for the field trip. You can register online for Fall Meeting press credentials here.
Reporters can register for the NASA field trip here. RSVPs for Foreign National media must be entered by 16 November 2018, in order to process NASA badging requirements. All reporters planning to attend the field trip MUST preregister; no on-site registrations will be accepted.
Questions: Email Patrick Lynch at [email protected]
Note: If you register for a field trip or workshop and are unable to attend, please cancel your registration as soon as possible so your spot can be made available to another person.
4. Virtual Press Room and expert tools launching soon
The Virtual Press Room and a tool to connect reporters with scientific experts at the meeting will launch in the Fall Meeting Media Center next month. The Find an Expert tool allows public information officers to list scientific experts who are available to be interviewed by reporters at the meeting.
For journalists: Journalists covering the Fall Meeting will find many resources online in the Virtual Press Room: Press releases, press conference materials (including PowerPoint presentations, images, videos, scientific papers, and more, as available) and other information. Videos of press conferences will be added to the Virtual Press Room during the meeting for easy online access.
For public information officers: PIOs will be able to share press releases online in the Virtual Press Room by directly uploading press releases and other supplemental materials to the site.
Instructions on how to upload materials to the Virtual Press Room and how to participate in the expert tools will be included in a future advisory. For more information, e-mail [email protected].
5. Abstracts and sessions online and searchable
All of the nearly 2,000 sessions and more than 26,000 abstracts for the 2018 Fall Meeting have been posted in the Scientific Program on the AGU Fall Meeting website.
The full scientific program is now searchable online. To search, click on the search button at the top, right-hand corner of the online program. Click on “Advanced Search” to search by session, paper or person. To browse sessions by AGU’s scientific sections and focus groups (e.g. Atmospheric Sciences, Planetary Sciences, etc.), click on the Sections, Tutorial Talks and Town Halls link on the left-hand side of the search engine. “Union” sessions offer the most interdisciplinary presentations.
AGU On-Demand allows attendees to live stream select content from the meeting and watch videos of presentations on-demand after the meeting. Registration for access to AGU On-Demand is required but free. Information on how to register will be included in a future advisory.
NOTE: Audio recording, photography or video recording is not allowed in scientific sessions or in poster halls.
6. Press events and preliminary press conference topics
AGU’s Public Information Office will be hosting three kinds of press events at the Fall Meeting:
- Press Conference – A small panel of speakers will share newsworthy findings being presented at the meeting.
- Workshop – Experts will provide comprehensive information and answer reporters’ questions about an upcoming project or mission, or an ongoing area of research, rather than present breaking news.
- Media Availability – A prominent person(s) in the Earth and space sciences will be available to reporters.
So far, we expect briefings on the changing Arctic, a visit to a near-Earth asteroid, Kilauea’s eruption, Puerto Rico’s recovery from the 2017 hurricanes and more. This list will grow and is subject to change.
The full list of press events, including dates, times, summaries and lists of participants, will appear in a future advisory one week before the start of the meeting. All press events will take place in the Press Conference Room. Information about the location of press conferences and press conference webstreaming will be included in a future advisory.
NOTE: Some events and activities, including but not limited to invitation-only events and communications workshops, are not open to press badge holders.
7. Press registration information
Online press registration for the Fall Meeting is now open. Please pre-register to expedite the on-site badge pick-up process.
The AGU Press Office provides complimentary press registration to professional journalists representing media organizations, freelance journalists, photographers, videographers, bloggers, podcasters, authors, filmmakers, public information officers, institutional communicators and student journalists for the express purpose of gathering news and information to produce media coverage of AGU meetings. Press registrants receive, at no charge, a badge that provides access to all scientific sessions, the press room and the press conference room. For eligibility requirements, please visit the Press Registration Eligibility Requirements page.
Registrations are approved at the discretion of the AGU press office and approval may take up to 5 business days. Eligible members of the press may also register for press credentials on-site at the meeting. The on-site registration location, badge pick-up location, and Press Room, Press Conference Room and Quiet Rooms locations will be included in a future advisory.
It is not required to wait for press registration approval before booking a hotel room, nor is it required to book a hotel room when registering to attend the meeting. Hotels sell out quickly and AGU encourages members of the media to book hotel rooms as soon as possible to take advantage of preferential rates.
Check the online Who’s Coming list of journalists and press officers who have registered for the meeting. This list is updated regularly.
NOTE: Some events and activities, including but not limited to invitation-only events and communications workshops, are not open to press badge holders.
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The American Geophysical Union is dedicated to advancing the Earth and space sciences for the benefit of humanity through its scholarly publications, conferences, and outreach programs. AGU is a not-for-profit, professional, scientific organization representing more than 60,000 members in 139 countries. Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and our other social media channels.
Nanci Bompey
+1 (202) 777-7524
[email protected]
Lauren Lipuma
+1 (202) 777-7396
[email protected]
Liza Lester
+1 (202) 777-7494
[email protected]