This Newsletter is all about opportunities. Our sister Offices have been busy in the last two weeks with the launch of the OAE's astrophotography contest, the call for proposals from the OAD, and its call for volunteers, fellows, and interns. We are also happy to promote the work of our colleagues at LCO and AWB, both of whom are providing space (pun intended) for people to learn and grow through the valuable resources they provide. In this Newsletter, there are opportunities to share your work, and collaborate with and learn from the work of others. We hope you benefit from these opportunities, and we look forward to hearing about how you’ve taken advantage of them!
Our IAU National Outreach Coordinators are hard at work planning for Dark and Quiet Skies month, but we are fortunate to have an exciting image from the recent hybrid solar eclipse.
There is more exciting news on the horizon!
May your skies be dark and quiet,
Kelly Blumenthal, on behalf of the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Team
Dark and Quiet Skies: Smartphone Astrophotography Workshops
Astrophotography (the process and its product) is widely regarded as one of the best ways to engage people with astronomy. However, the equipment that is typically required can be very expensive, essentially blocking some people from considering the activity as a hobby. Smartphones, on the other hand, are used by a sizeable fraction of the global population, and so are a relatively accessible resource for many people (though, of course, this is not true of everyone). In partnership with AWB, the OAO has gathered some of the foremost experts in smartphone astrophotography to provide some tips and tricks about how to use a smartphone to take beautiful photographs of the night sky.
In order to maximise the number of people around the globe who can participate, we are offering this workshop at three different times:
• 3 May 2023 7:00 AM UTC
• 4 May 2023 3:00 PM UTC
• 14 May 2023 6:00 AM UTC To register for one* of these workshops, please go to this link.
We have also partnered with our sister Office to sponsor a smartphone astrophotography category in the OAE astrophotography contest, described below. After they are announced, the winners and honourable mentions will be featured at an e-Exhibit and Gala hosted by the OAO. Stay tuned for more details!
* Please note that the content of these workshops will be the same. It is not necessary to participate in all three workshops. If you would like the opportunity to review the material on your own time and at your own pace, the recordings of each workshop will be made available immediately after the workshop ends.
1) IAU Offices Updates
a) The IAU Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE) has launched the third edition of their astrophotography contest. This year, the OAE invites participants to submit images in the following categories: phases of Venus, day arcs of the Sun and solargraphs, sunrise and sunset location over the year, and images of any astronomical object taken exclusively with smartphones or mobile devices. The deadline for submissions is 30 June 2023 at noon CET. Submissions will be evaluated by an international panel of astrophotographers and astronomy educators, who will consider not only the aesthetic and technical qualities of the images, but also the educational value of each entry in the context of primary and secondary school teaching. For more information about the OAE competition and to submit your photographs, go to this website.
b) The IAU Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) Newsletter January - March is now available. This issue includes many opportunities for the wider community to get involved in OAD projects and become part of the OAD community itself. Click here for the latest OAD Newsletter.
c) The OAD invites applications for projects that use astronomy to make an impact on sustainable development. The OAD call for proposals is open to anyone from anywhere in the world. Applicants who lack training or experience in writing proposals can request Proposal Writing support. The deadline to request proposal writing support is 14 May 2023, and the deadline to apply is 31 May 2023. For more information and a link to the call's application, consult this website.
d) The OAD has open opportunities for volunteers, interns, and fellows. They invite all educational backgrounds (including astronomy, engineering, sciences, humanities, etc.) and experiences (undergraduates, grad students, postdocs, professionals, etc.) to apply, as long as they can motivate how they will contribute to the OAD. There are no deadlines for these opportunities; applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Click here for more information about OAD opportunities.
2) IAU Working Group on Ethoastronomy & Intangible Astronomical Heritage to host Cultural Astronomy Panel
The IAU Working Group on Ethnoastronomy & Intangible Astronomical Heritage will host a hybrid panel entitled Cultural Astronomy: The Meeting Point of Sea, Sky, and Land, at the Society for the Social Studies of Science (4S) is meeting in Honolulu, Hawai'i, this November.
3) I-HOW Accepting Applications
The IAU calls for applications for workshops under the IAU Hands-On Workshops (I-HOW) initiative. This is an initiative to train young scientists in developing countries in accessing, analysing and using those data for their research projects. For more information, check out the I-HOW website.
4) UNESCO International Day of Light, 6th Edition
It is our pleasure to welcome everyone to participate in the 6th edition of UNESCO's International Day of Light. The International Day of Light (IDL) is an annual United Nations observance raising awareness of the broad societal importance of light science and technology across diverse sectors of society and in diverse fields such as communications, energy & healthcare, as well as art and culture. IDL is celebrated every year on May 16, the scientific anniversary of the first operation of the laser by physicist Theodore Maiman. Since its first proclamation in 2018, more than 2200 events have taken place in over 103 countries and have seen targeted science outreach events around the world at all levels reaching a global audience estimated at over 2 million.
A key objective for the 6th edition is to gather deeper insights into the challenges faced by communities in organising events, through the online IDL Event Organiser Survey. We encourage you to reach out to us to learn more about how you can engage with the global celebrations. Registration for 2023 is open. Fill out this simple form to be officially recognised as an IDL event. Come join us in yet another fruitful global celebration!
For more information, contact IDL Communications Coordinator, Geethu Paulose, at contact@lightday.org.
5) Call for Global Sky Partners - Telescope Time for Educational Projects
Las Cumbres Observatory is offering 1000 hours for educational projects using its robotic network of 10 x 0.4m telescopes. All applications for supported educational projects are welcome, but those from underserved communities and the developing world are particularly encouraged. Applications are due before 26 May 2023. Click here for more information about the LCO educational opportunity.
6) Get Involved with the AWB Astronomy Live-Streaming Community
Astronomers Without Borders (AWB) has recently launched an astronomy live-streaming community on their platform, which aims to bring together everyone with experience or interest in live-streaming astronomical events. This method of engagement is becoming increasingly popular, especially during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, and organisers have been working on new ways to exploit this successful format to engage with an ever-larger pool of viewers, both locally and globally. Following discussions held at the EPSC2022 conference last September and in a follow-up online session, several teams around the world highlighted the need for an online platform to strengthen the network, share materials and host conversations to support the live streaming of astronomy events worldwide.
Before joining the community, you must visit the AWB website and click “Become a Member” (it’s free!). You can then add yourself to the “Astronomy Live-Streaming” community and join the discussion.
The leads for this community are Graham Jones (TimeAndDate), Helen Usher (Open University & Europlanet), and Claudia Mignone (INAF). Please contact them for more information.
7) Updates from the IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs)
a) Falling Walls Female Science Talents
The Falling Walls Female Science Talents and the Elsevier Foundation are seeking exceptional talents who conduct interdisciplinary, groundbreaking research in their field and contribute to gender equality and diversity in science and academia. Outstanding women (including trans women, genderqueer, and non-binary people) will be awarded in each of the three categories: Innovation, Gender Mainstreaming, and Empowerment. The deadline for nominations is 31 May 2023. For more information about this opportunity from Falling Walls, refer to their website.
b) Save the Date! Japan Science Forum Conference this November The 5th Japan SciCom Forum (JSF) Conference will be held from 21-22 November 2023 in person at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology in Okinawa, Japan. They are still working to put together a programme for their conference and are taking suggestions for topics, sessions, or speakers. If you’d like to submit a suggestion, contact them at japanscicomforum@gmail.com. The JSF website will be updated with more information in the coming months.
b) The May 2023 issue of the Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand Newsletter is Now Available [Content in English]
The RASNZ is a society dedicated to expanding our knowledge of astronomy, fostering the public's interest in the science, and advancing astronomy to new frontiers. Read the May RASNZ Newsletter for more information about their activities and opportunities in New Zealand.
c) Toolkit to Make Meetings More Accessible to the BLV Community [Content in English]
Developed by the Johns Hopkins University Disability Health Research Center and the International Network of Researchers with Visual Impairments and their Allies (INOVA), this toolkit is based on principles of universal design and includes information for meeting planners, conference staff, presenters, and attendees, regardless of familiarity with accessibility. Click here for access to this accessibility toolkit.
10) IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Newsletter in Non-English Languages
Our newsletter is being translated into the following languages:
Arabic
Translations are thanks to the members of the Bahrain Stargazers Astronomy Club.
Chinese (Simplified)
Translations are thanks to Dr Chen Cao, Shandong Astronomical Society (SDAS) of China.
French
Translations are thanks to the Club d'Astronomie de Tabarre (CAT), a subset of the Haitian Astronomical Society (SHA). Translations of previous Newsletters into French were thanks to the Haitian Translation Group of Astronomy and are still available on this page.
Galician
Translations are thanks to Martin Pawley of the Agrupación Astronómica Coruñesa Ío in Spain.
Italian
Translations are thanks to Eleonora Piromalli of AstronomiAmo in Italy.
Portuguese (European)
Translations are thanks to João Ferreira and Frederico Arez through the Astronomy Translation Network Portuguese Language Group.
Spanish
Translations are thanks to Andrea Ahumada of the Observatorio Astronómico, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, and Ileana Andruchow of the Instituto Astrofísica de La Plata, Universidad Nacional de La Plata. For translations of previous Newsletters in Spanish, thanks to Emílio Zuniga of the Association of Amateur Astronomers in León, Nicaragua, click here.
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 are always looking for material about astronomy outreach, communication and public engagement from around the world to include in our next IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Newsletter. 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.
Please send us your suggestions through the 4th for issue #1 and the 17th for issue #2 of each month. We look forward to hearing from you!
