In this issue, we want to highlight the Women and Girls in Astronomy IAU Outreach Global Project that is in full swing and invite you to join us in this celebration of women in Astronomy. Maybe you can share your event in the Global Outreach Events Calendar, which has now more than 200 entries dedicated to the project and 4000+ views. You can join us in the online campaign that has gathered more than 54K impressions on Facebook and Twitter. Your posts and engagement can help our community to better address gender disparities in Astronomy and STEM by sharing resources, activities and the astronomers who inspire you - just use hashtags #WomenInAstronomy and #WomanInSTEM.
This newsletter also contains updates from the IAU, including the announcement of new prizes for Astronomy Education, Outreach and Development, and information on new projects from some of our IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs).
Wishing you the clearest skies and good health!
Suzana Filipecki Martins and Lina Canas, on behalf of the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Team
1) How to Participate in the IAU Outreach Global Project Women and Girls in Astronomy
The IAU Women and Girls in Astronomy project recognises the role of women in advancing science and encourages girls to consider careers in astronomy. As part of the project, the OAO is organizing Meet the IAU Astronomers | Special Edition: Women and Girls, a series of live interviews where, astronomers have the opportunity to discuss their career path, their research, inclusion, ways to address discrimination and how to build a more diverse astronomy landscape. Join us on 18 February for a conversation between former IAU President Silvia Torres-Peimbert and IAU National Outreach Coordinator for Bahrain Myriam Alqassab and on 25 February to meet astronomers Ilhuiyolitzin Villicana Pedraza and Amelia Ortiz-Gil.
There are other ways you can join the Women and Girl in Astronomy project: You can register your event in the Astronomy Outreach Event Calendar, or share a short video about your astronomy career path, your daily work life, and why inclusion is important. Or join us in an online campaign to address gender disparities in Astronomy and STEM, and more. To find out details on how to join the Women and Girls in Astronomy project: https://www.iau.org/public/women-and-girls-in-astronomy/
2) IAU Announces Three New Prizes for Astronomy Education, Outreach and Development
The IAU is launching three new prizes to be awarded every three years at the General Assembly: the IAU Astronomy Education Prize, the IAU Astronomy Outreach Prize and the IAU Astronomy Development Prize. These awards have been created with generous funding from IAU Past President Ewine van Dishoeck. Nominations will be open from 15 February 2022 until 15 March 2022 for the first round of prizes, which will be presented at the IAU XXXI General Assembly in Busan, South Korea, in August this year.
3) Selection of New IAU Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference
The IAU has announced the selection of the SKA Observatory (SKAO) and NSF’s NOIRLab as co-hosts of the new IAU Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference. The Centre coordinates collaborative multidisciplinary international efforts with institutions and individuals and works across multiple geographic areas to help mitigate the negative impact of satellite constellations on ground-based optical and radio astronomy observations as well as humanity’s enjoyment of the night sky.
4) IAU Inclusive Outreach Starts Collaboration with the European Blind Union
The Inclusive Outreach IAU subWorkgroup has successfully established a collaboration with the European Blind Union (EBU - www.euroblind.org), with the goal to explore opportunities and to make our outreach efforts more relevant by having direct feedback from experts on our activities, specialized training of outreach practitioners
and the creation of links with communities of blind and visually impaired people for collaboration.
5) News from the IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs)
a) Many NOCs are participating in the Women and Girls in Astronomy project. Events were organized by NOC Croatia, NOC Sudan, NOC Slovakia, NOC Trinidad and Tobago, NOC Argentina, NOC Czech Republic, NOC Dominican Republic, NOC Mauritania, and NOC Iraq. We also want to highlight the contribution from our NAEC Romania colleagues that engaged over 100 school units to carry out activities in the country.
b) NOC Dominican Republic organized various stargazing activities that were catered to underserved communities and carried out with telescopes donated by the Telescopes for All project.
c) NOCs continue to address COVID restriction measures by implementing engaging online activities. On 18 January, NOC Iraq presented a virtual lecture with Dr Duha Mahmoud. On the same day, NOC Barbados hosted a public live stream of Asteroid 1994 PC1. On 27 January, NOC Botswana organized an online talk by Stephen James O'Meara, an award-winning astronomer and author, and on 6 February, NOC Haiti hosted an online conference on comparative planetology. The event was the first in an introductory series dedicated to amateur astronomers.
f) NOCs have also carried out in-person activities, many implemented in schools. NOC Sudan implemented an awareness programme for children, where they ran activities and lectures dedicated to preschool pupils, while NOC Ethiopia organized a school outreach event at Birhan Ber Primary School. The outreach programme included a presentation by professional astronomers and a demonstration of telescopes.
e) From 26 January to 6 February, NOC Egypt participated in the Cairo International Book Fair presenting several publications on basic astronomy, in addition to models, star wheel, star clock, sundial and activities for observing the Sun.
6) International Day of Light 2022
The International Day of Light (IDL) is a global initiative by UNESCO celebrated annually on the 16th of May, focusing on the significance of light and its role in science, art, technology, culture, education, and sustainable development in diverse fields, that help achieve UNESCO's goals – education, equality, and peace. This year IDL also focuses on the UN International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development 2022 & UN International Year Of Glass, the success of the James Webb Space Telescope and the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
7) Webb Space Telescope Community Events and Resources
NASA and its partners want to share the experience of the Webb Space Telescope’s first images with communities all over the United States and abroad. The release of Webb’s first images in July 2022 represents a unique opportunity to engage our international community. You can apply to be a Community Event host, the deadline for applications is Friday, February 25, 2022. Other resources have been made available to the astronomy outreach community, including a launch kit and many informal education resources.
On Friday 18 February, there will be a new edition of Global Science Show in Your Mother Tongue to celebrate International Mother Language Day. Add contributions in your language! This show features science in general, therefore scientists and science communicators from other disciplines are invited as well.
Astrodatos is a Spanish astrophotography blog that uses astrophotographs as a starting point to communicate astronomical information to the general public. Functioning as a documentary resource and astronomy dissemination tool, the blog aims to show science as an adventure of knowledge.
Japanese:https://bit.ly/36XeKZr
Translations are thanks to Akihiko Tomita, through the Astronomy Translation Network.
You can subscribe to the Japanese newsletter through the Japanese Amateur Astronomers Association (http://www.jaaa-astro.jp/jaaa-ml.html) or the Japanese Society for Education and Popularization of Astronomy (http://www.tenkyo.net/).
If you are interested in translating the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Newsletter into your language, please email public@oao.iau.org.
11) Contribute to the IAU Astronomy Outreach Newsletter
We’re always looking to include news about astronomy outreach, communication and public engagement from around the world in the next newsletter from the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach. If you have an astronomical event, job, opportunity, educational resource, or anything else that would be of interest to the astronomy outreach community, send us an email at public@oao.iau.org with more information.
You can send us your suggestions through the 4th for issue #1 and the 17th for issue #2 of each month. We are looking forward to hearing from you!
