Asteroid Day is almost here! Don’t miss the chance to raise awareness for asteroid hazard impacts by engaging in various types of activities proposed [website]. As the long-awaited August total eclipse approaches, we are receiving more and more news of the numerous activities being put together. Sky and Telescope magazine has been very active as a promoter of the many activities surrounding the eclipse.
In this issue, we highlight: the new Mexican planetarium show focused on Mayan Archeoastronomy, Zooniverse and the launch of their 100th project, and Stixcamp workshop, that will focus on the topic: Open Education and Open Science through Citizen Science.
In this newsletter we often like to thank our collaborators around the world and express gratitude for their efforts in helping us disseminate outreach activities around the world, inspiring others to join and implement some of the best practices around. Today, we want to welcome nine new National Outreach Contacts (NOCs) who will be sharing exciting outreach and education news from their countries!
Happy reading and clear skies!
The IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach team
1) National Outreach Contact (NOC) Corner: News from Italy
a) Celebrating 50 years of amateur astronomy in Bologna
To celebrate their 50th anniversary, one of the oldest Amateur Astronomy clubs in Italy, the Associazione Astrofili Bolognesi (AAB) is preparing several outreach events that will take place throughout the year. These activities include an exhibition of historical and current photographs of astronomical objects: from the first images obtained with the multi-mirror telescope by the Italian astronomer Guido Horn d'Arturo, the club's founding father, to the latest planet imaging through webcams. Every weekend there will be hands-on activities for children and talks by professional and amateur astronomers.
2) National Outreach Contact (NOC) Corner: News from Madagascar
a) Celebrating Asteroid Day
On June 30, Asteroid Day will be celebrated in Madagascar by Haikintana (meaning Astronomy in Malagasy), a group that brings together enthusiast amateurs and graduate students in STEM. Various activities are planned for the day: exhibition and educational programmes, AstroQuiz, a seminar on Asteroids, a projection of the 51 Degrees North movie, and stargazing. The event will focus on attracting a wide audience (from young children to adults) with activities designed to raise awareness of the threat posed by near-Earth asteroids. These events are a collaboration with AMPS, ASTRO (a private observatory), HABAKA, ORTANA, Agmm and MASS (the Malagasy Astronomy & Space Science).
The August 21st total solar eclipse is almost here and gathering momentum to study the Sun! Citizen-science projects or do-it-yourself experiments are becoming a popular and unique way to engage with the phenomenon that will be visible coast to coast in North America.
a) Eclipse Ballooning Project
Instead of watching the spectacle from the ground, members of the Eclipse Ballooning Project will be sending equipment to the stratosphere for a unique view. Fifty-seven teams of high school and college students will launch about 65 unpiloted balloons to record and stream live video of the eclipse. NASA will broadcast the feed directly on its homepage, nasa.gov, and on NASA TV. Find them on the project’s website: http://streameclipse.live.
b) Do-It-Yourself Relativity
This Eclipse also offers a unique chance to relive history. When Albert Einstein developed his theory of general relativity in 1915, he also proposed a way to check it. This project offers a Do-It-Yourself approach and launches the challenge: Why don’t you try to follow in Eddington’s footsteps and do it yourself? Check out his instructions here.
The Zooniverse has just hit an incredible milestone! Galaxy Nurseries is their 100th official project launch. This is a project run by University of Minnesota researchers who need everyone’s help to find baby galaxies in our universe with the goal of understanding how galaxies form and grow over time. Galaxy Zoo—launched almost ten years ago—is the first Zooniverse project and also focuses on answering questions about galaxy formation and evolution.
5) The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) 1 min. TOPICS
The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) 1 min. TOPICS is a website containing easy-to-understand one-minute videos introducing the various research activities being conducted at NAOJ facilities until 2015, and summaries of NAOJ key activities and results. The contents feature some of NAOJ’s top projects including Hinode, SOLAR-C, Subaru Telescope, ALMA, VERA— and the science behind them. Each project is presented individually by Naojay, a friendly mascot that will guide you through each topic.
6) Looking for a new hobby? —An astronomy stamp collection might be worth a try
With stamps bearing images ranging from constellations to famous astronomers, and from telescopes to celestial objects, stamp collecting is popular in many countries. Anyone interested in stamp collecting can find astronomy stamps to suit all tastes. Still not convinced? Have a look at some great examples from around the world. Our references include examples from Japan, the USA (and more), the UK and France (and much more)!
Are you a collector? Have we missed a good reference from your country’s astronomy stamp collection? We're sure there are plenty of great examples out there. Contact us; we would love to hear about them.
7) Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe—Free planetarium show
The first fully animated fulldome show made in Mexico: “Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe” narrates the relationship of Mayan archaeological sites with some celestial objects such as Venus, the Sun and the Moon. With the goal of achieving a greater impact, this fulldome production is narrated in four languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese and freely distributed. You can download all materials here http://www.eso.org/public/usa/videos/MAA-show/ and receive all new through the project's Facebook fan page: https://www.facebook.com/ArqueoastronomiaMaya
8) StixCamp—Open Education and Open Science through Citizen Science
StixCamp is an informal workshop to discuss open standards in Science, Education, Technology & Culture, for Development. Following an unconference style, StixCamp explores topics such as open design and open data, open education and open collaboration. The second StixCamp workshop, from 6 - 9 July in Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, Portugal, will be dedicated to the topics of Open Education and Open Science through Citizen Science. The 1st Open Science Centre will be launched in Barca D'Alva on the 9 July and Figueira will host a series of cultural events.
You can find the preliminary programme here: www.open.org.pt
9) Meetings & Global Events
Here you can find a list of astronomy outreach & education conferences and events around the world. Plan ahead for a year full of interesting events!
StixCamp - Open Education and Open Science through Citizen Science
Date: 6 - 9 July, 2017
Location: Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo
More Information: http://www.open.org.pt/
Important Dates
ITCA Colloquium - Astronomy for STEM Education Deadline for application: 10 July 2017
Dates: 7 to 11 August 2017,
Location: Bangkok, Thailand.
Upcoming
a) European Week of Astronomy and Space Science (EWASS)
Date: 26–30 June 2017
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
More information: http://eas.unige.ch/EWASS2017/about.jsp
b) Asteroid Day
Date: 30 June 2017
Location: Around the world
More Information: http://asteroidday.org/
c) Royal Astronomical Society National Astronomy Meeting 2017
Date: 2–6 July 2017
Location: University of Hull, United Kingdom
More Information: https://nam2017.org/
d) The International Symposium on Education in Astronomy and Astrobiology
Date: July 3-7, 2017
Location: Utrecht, the Netherlands
More Information: http://ise2a.uu.nl/
e) 13th Asian-Pacific Regional IAU Meeting (APRIM 2017)
Date: 3–7 July 2017
Location: Taipei, Taiwan
More Information: http://www.aprim2017.tw/
f) StixCamp - Open Education and Open Science through Citizen Science
Date: 6 - 9 July, 2017
Location: Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo
More Information: http://www.open.org.pt/
h) ITCA Colloquium - Astronomy for STEM Education
Dates: 7 to 11 August 2017
Location: Bangkok, Thailand.
i) Global Hands-On Universe (GHOU) Conference 2017 with the Galileo Teacher Training Program (GTTP) International Workshop 2017
Dates: 15-21 August 2017
Location: Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky, US
More Information: http://handsonuniverse.org/ghou2017/
j) Euro-Mediterranean and Middle East (EMME) Summer School for Science Communication
Date: 10-15 September 2017
Location: Naples, Italy
More information: http://www.cittadellascienza.it/emme2017/
k) European Planetary Science Congress 2017
Date: 17–22 September 2017
Location: Radisson Blu Hotel Latvija, Riga, Latvia
More Information: http://www.epsc2017.eu/
l) 3rd COSPAR Symposium
Date: 18–22 September 2017
Location: Jeju Island, South Korea,
More information: https://cosparhq.cnes.fr/
r) 15th International Public Communication of Science and Technology Conference (PCST2018)
Date: 4–6 April 2018
Location: Dunedin, New Zealand
More Information: http://www.pcst2018.org/pcst18
If you are interested in translating our newsletter to your language, please let us know via outreach@iau.org.
11) Contributions to this newsletter - looking forward to hearing from you in 2017!
Here at the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach, we are always looking for more news about astronomical education and outreach events around the world. Please continue to share your stories with us in 2017! If you are organising any large-scale events at a regional or international level, offering astronomy education or communication job positions, have any innovative projects or inspiring stories, looking for professional–amateur collaboration in astronomy, or have created any educational resources, let us know by sending an email to outreach@iau.org.
