If you're interested in getting more involved with the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach, please consider applying to be our new Director. We pride ourselves on having a unique and diverse team, so consider applying if you have interesting ideas about the direction of the Office.
Our IAU National Outreach Coordinators have been particularly active during the last few weeks with solstice celebrations, Asteroid Day, and myriad other events. We are so grateful for their tireless efforts to bring astronomy into their communities.
May your skies be dark and quiet,
Kelly Blumenthal, on behalf of the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Team
CAPjournal Special Edition on CAPconference 2022 Available Now!
The latest edition of CAPjournal is now available for free on the CAPjournal website! We hope you'll enjoy our collection of some of the highest-rated contributions to the first-ever hybrid CAP Conference, which took place in Sydney, Australia and online in September 2022. These articles perfectly exemplify the theme of the conference – Astronomy for a better world – and we're very proud to present them to you in this peer-reviewed issue.
1) Vacancy: IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Director The International Astronomical Union (IAU) Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO) is a hub for coordinating astronomy public outreach activities worldwide. The aim is to make it easier for the public to access information about our Universe and local and global astronomy events. The IAU OAO is based at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ), Mitaka Campus, Tokyo, Japan.
The IAU and NAOJ seek an excellent individual to join the IAU OAO. The OAO Director will be appointed according to the standard conditions of service of NAOJ employees and will report formally to the Director General of the NAOJ. The OAO Director is a contract position for three years, with the possibility of renewal under the standard employment procedures of the NAOJ.
2) Save the Date! African Regional Shaw-IAU Workshop on Astronomy for Education
Please save the date for the African Regional Shaw-IAU Workshop on Astronomy for Education scheduled to take place from 3 - 5 October 2023 in person at the South African Astronomical Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa. The workshop is being organised by the African Astronomical Society (AfAS) in collaboration with the IAU Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE).
Under the theme of Astronomy Education in Africa, this workshop presents a fantastic opportunity for us to promote the potential of astronomy in formal education, particularly leading up to the IAU General Assembly 2024. The workshop will provide a platform for the National Astronomy Education Coordinators (NAECs) and science engagement specialists (science centres, planetariums, museums, etc.) to showcase their various astronomy education initiatives, helping to stimulate and encourage others to do the same. For teachers, it will be a valuable opportunity to enhance their astronomy knowledge, gain fresh and innovative teaching approaches, and participate in workshops with hands-on activities that will boost their confidence in astronomy teaching.
Stay tuned for more information!
3) Save the Date! African Planetarium Association Biannual Workshop
Please save the date for the next African Planetarium Association (APA) Biannual Workshop, to be held in conjunction with the IAU Symposium 386: Dark Sky and Astronomical Heritage in Boosting Astrotourism. This hybrid workshop is scheduled to take place from 11 - 12 November 2023 at the Ethiopian Science and Art Museum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, directly preceding the IAU Symposium 386 (13 - 17 November). The workshop is jointly organised by APA, the African Astronomical Society (AfAS), and the Ethiopian Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI) and will be free to attend by all who register.
Through its biannual workshop, the APA aims to foster the development and expansion of the planetarium community in Africa by facilitating the exchange of knowledge, experiences, resources, and best practices. The workshop will encompass various themes, spanning from utilising planetaria as important education and science outreach facilities, using planetaria for astrotourism, establishing and maintaining sustainable planetarium facilities, exploring scientific research within the planetarium setting, to tackling current challenges facing African planetariums.
Stay tuned for more information!
4) Call for nominations for the UNESCO Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science Scientists, journalists, educators and science communicators from around the world who have made substantial contributions are invited to apply for the UNESCO Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science. To be considered by UNESCO, the applications must be endorsed either by the candidate’s government, in consultation with their National Commission for UNESCO, or by an NGO that has an official partnership with UNESCO. The deadline to apply is 30 July.
5) Updates from the IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs) a) China - Nanjing
One team from China - Nanjing was selected for NameExoWorlds 2022 (Danfeng丹凤 for L 168-9 and Qingluan青鸾 for L 168-9b). The Chinese Astronomy Society, along with the Beijing Planetarium and the OAE Center China - Nanjing, organised a ceremony and public lecture to celebrate. Click here for a news article about this NameExoWorlds 2022 celebration [content in Chinese].
b) Egypt
(i) The NOC Egypt, Somaya Saad, worked with her colleagues at NRIAG and the Aswan Governate to organise an experiment to determine the path of the passage of the Tropic of Cancer in Egypt. This measurement took place at a location where the Sun is directly perpendicular on 21 June of each year, marking the start of the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere.
(ii) The NOC Egypt helped to organise an observing night for children that included a simplified explanation of the sky, how to determine your direction from the constellations, and observing Venus and Mars.
(iii) The NOC Egypt helped to organise a school visit to the Helway Observatory Museum. The tour included a visit to the solar dome, museum exhibition halls and interactive discussions on astronomy and the most important developments in the field of astronomy.
(iv) The NOC Egypt helped to organise a workshop for children from 6-12 years of age on the phases of the Moon.
(v) To commemorate the International Day of Light IDL, the NOC Egypt helped to organise a seminar entitled "Light from Culture and Art to Lasers and Sustainability" by Prof. Dr. Yasser Abdel Hady
c) Kuwait
Our NOC Kuwait, Khaled A. Al-jamaan, organised their Space Academy from June 12th until June 21st at the Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre. The camp was designed to inspire young minds to explore space, learn about the basics of space science, and discover what it takes to become an astronaut.
6) Opportunities a) Japan SciComm Forum 2023: Registration is Now Open
The JSF2023 conference will take place in person at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) campus on 21 and 22 November. As Japan's only English-language science communication annual conference, the organisers create a venue to share, learn, and discuss challenges and best practices. The conference will feature a keynote, flash talks, workshops, and networking sessions.
b) Club of Rome Communications Fellowship The Club of Rome is currently accepting applications for its Communications Fellowship 2023. The fellowship is a five-month mentoring programme aimed at increasing the diversity of voices covering sustainability issues and supporting early-career communications professionals who are from underrepresented communities and regions. It will be a remote placement with the successful fellow working from their home environment and with one trip to meet members of The Club of Rome team.
b) Space Scoop: Double Scoop! [Content currently in English]
Space Scoop produces articles on the latest in astronomy and space science in easy-to-understand language. Don’t miss their weekly updates that include stories from many of the world’s space agencies! Get your Double Scoop of easily-accessible astronomy knowledge here and here. If you would like to help Space Scoop get translated into more of the world’s languages, email them at info@unawe.org.
8) 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.
9) 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!
