IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Newsletter

100 Hours of Astronomy 2023
 

From 1 to 4 October 2023, the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach continued the legacy of celebrating 100 Hours of Astronomy under the theme One Planet, with a particular focus on the Overview Effect.

This year, we reached 68 countries and more than 20,000 people through our Events Calendar, and more than 130,000 people online. We honoured the incredible work of our global community by featuring their events on social media during the 100 Hours, inspiring people all over the world to be a part of the celebrations. Our Arts Competition also saw enormous engagement, with nearly 150 entries of beautiful works of art, poetry, and food! Two individuals will be randomly selected to receive a telescope, courtesy of Sterren Schitteren Voor Iedereen (Stars Shine For Everyone - SSVI), University Ghent, Leiden University, and BRESSER.

Thank you to everyone who participated in 100 Hours of Astronomy!

7) Updates from the IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs)
a) Argentina
The NOC Argentina, Andrea Verónica Ahumada, held an event for students from different parts of the province of Córdoba to visit the oldest Astronomical Observatory in Argentina.

b) Bangladesh
The NOC Bangladesh Team organised the Jamal Nazrul Islam Astronomy Workshop in Barishal City. This event covered a range of topics including galaxies, black holes, the Solar System, the evolution of stars, astronomical phenomena, and constellations, and featured interactive sessions, quizzes, and poster presentations to engage participants in learning about the wonders of the universe.

c) Dominican Republic
The NOC Dominican Republic, Manuel Grullon, held three events during 100 Hours of Astronomy, all of which heavily featured discussions about the importance of caring for the Earth, as doing so ensures our own well-being:

• A free public urban event in Santo Domingo entitled A Planet to Care For. During this event, they observed the night sky and discussed the Pale Blue Dot message, the importance of dark skies, and how science has helped us understand the importance of caring for the Earth.
• A solar observing event to look at the sun in visible and H-alpha light with more than 100 high school students and their teachers. They also provided a talk about planetary sciences and the scale of the Solar System.
• A public observing event in Santo Domingo to observe the night sky, including some of the planets in our Solar System.

d) Egypt
Somaya Saad, the NOC Egypt, presented activities and lectures on astronomy and its importance not only for the pursuit of knowledge but for cultural purposes as well. In these discussions, the NOC Team reviewed the most important astronomical phenomena, their causes, and how to monitor and track them.

e) Ethiopia
Kriubel Menberu, a member of the NOC Ethiopia Team, held an event that spanned two cities to coincide with 100 Hours of Astronomy and World Space Week. In Addis Ababa, the event was hosted by the Ethiopian Space Science Society in collaboration with the Space Science and Geospatial Institute. Activities in this location encompassed school outreach programmes, panel discussions, documentary screenings, and a question-and-answer session. Meanwhile, in Haramaya, the Ethiopian Space Science Society and its Haramaya Branch worked with Haramaya University to organise a five-day workshop on space science and technology for high school students, an event that also featured school outreach initiatives and stargazing nights.

f) Ghana
Naomi Asabre Frimpong, our NOC Ghana organised two events for 100 Hours of Astronomy:

• A talk for school children on astronomy followed by a hands-on session in which students assembled and used a Galileoscope.
• With the Ghana Space Science and Technology, the NOC Ghana Team organised a SpaceJam, a space science and technology learning and entertainment programme to bring awareness to space science.

g) Haiti
John Masken Larose, part of the NOC Haiti Team, created a series of videos in both French and English in honour of 100 Hours of Astronomy on the theme: The Earth, a Unique Planet. You can watch all of their videos on the NOC Haiti YouTube channel. 

h) India
The NOC India, Samir Dhurde, put together a series of excellent suggestions for the community to participate in 100 Hours of Astronomy.

i) Iraq
The NOC Iraq, Ali Al-Edhari, created a host of translated materials for the Arabic-speaking public to spread awareness of 100 Hours of Astronomy. In addition, the NOC Iraq collaborated on three events:

• The Andromeda Team collaborated with the Scientific Care Department of the Ministry of Youth and Sports to host an astronomy observation event and lecture on astronomical phenomena at the Al-Jaafar Youth Forum in Baghdad.
• The Salah al-Din Astronomical Team, sponsored by the Volunteer Work Division of the Salah al-Din Youth and Sports Directorate conducted an astronomical observation session.
• The Buhriz Astronomy Team organised an event for Buhriz primary school students. They had the opportunity to photograph Saturn, Jupiter, and the Moon, in addition to attending a lecture on the Solar System.

j) Morocco
The NOC and NAEC for Morocco, Meriem El Yajouri and Zakaria Belhaj (respectively) teamed up to host an event in Arabic for 100 Hours of Astronomy that covered the Universe during the era of JWST and what we can learn from astronomical phenomena. Following the talks, the team held a stargazing session.

k) Nepal
The Co-NOC Nepal, Manisha Dwa, held several events for 100 Hours of Astronomy in spite of the inclement weather in the region: 

• Two days of solar observing and learning about the Sun.
• A lesson with school children in which they learned about telescopes and how to use a planisphere.
• A session in which students from a remote village in the suburb of Janakpur learned about astronomy and telescopes.
• An astronomy lesson and observing night, supported by an Office of Astronomy for Development project, Astronomy for Community Empowerment in Nepal.

l) Philippines
Girlie G. Cortez, a member of the NOC Philippines Team, helped to organise an event with the Space Science and Astronomy Section of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration at an orphanage care centre in Quezon City. Their programme focussed on the Solar System: they held a short lecture and followed up with games, activities, and an indoor observing session (due to inclement weather in the region).

m) Slovakia
The NOC Slovakia, Rudolf Galis, organised a lecture and planetarium shows on the Universe and space exploration, combined with stargazing in the evening sky, which took place at the Observatory and Planetarium of the Leisure Time Centre in Košice.

n) Syria
The NOC Syria, the Syrian Astronomical Association, held several events supervised by Dr Muhammad Al-Asiri, Turkiya Jabour, Sarah Al-Badira, Tariq Al-Khatib and Sham Sheikh Jabr:

• A talk that introduced the Syrian Astronomical Association and its role in spreading astronomy in Syria that additionally explained the difference between planets, constellations, asteroids, and star clusters. Participants learned about constellations and enjoyed a simulated night of observation through Stellarium.
• An astronomical poetry competition to illustrate the relationship between astronomy and literature, particularly ancient poetry.
• A lecture entitled Moving Planets and Social Interaction delivered by Hassan Al-Haj Ibrahim.
• A special activity at the Al-Wafa Association for People with Special Needs in Masyaf. The activity included an explanation of the planet Earth. The organisers also engaged participants in arts and crafts activities centred around the planet Earth and space science.
• An observing night inside the Syrian Astronomical Observatory that included using the telescopes to learn about the night sky and constellations, in addition to observing and taking photos of planets.
• Dr Muhammed Alassiry and two members of the Syrian Astronomical Association spoke about the IAU Offices and the 100 Hours of Astronomy project on the Syrian National TV programme, Eye on the Universe.

8) Resources

a) Resources for the LGBTQIA+ Communities in Astronomy
In mid-October, we celebrated Spirit Day, an anti-bullying campaign in support of LGBTQIA+ youth from the United Nations Free and Equal. During this week-long project, we posted a number of resources for LGBTQIA+ communities in astronomy, which we also share here. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list. Many other groups are working hard to make STEM a safe space for LGBTQIA+ communities.

• Building community and finding role models: One of the most important lessons we learnt during the preparation for this week-long project was the need for visible role models and building a community in which you can feel free to truly be yourself. These resources might help to approach these issues: 500 Queer Scientists, Out Astronaut and the Astronomy & Astrophysics OutList. International campaigns like LGBTQ STEM Day help provide visibility for those in the community who feel safe enough to do so.
• Affecting change in your community: Having difficult conversations can be, well, difficult. Change is never easy, but Diversci published a First Aid Kit that might help facilitate fruitful discussions within your institution. Activist groups like PRISMA are working to create a safe space for LGBTQIA+ communities in STEM in Spain and published a set of 10 best practices for institutions and organisations to make their workspaces more inclusive. In the context of the United States, LGBTQ+ Physicists and the AAS Committee for Sexual and Gender Minorities in Astronomy also wrote an article discussing best practices in academic astronomy and physics spaces. Other ways to directly impact the community is to develop tools that proactively address specific known problems, such as the LGBTQ Travel Tool, which aims to provide guidance on institutional travel policies that might ensure the safety of their LGBTQIA+ members.

b) Kisa tout sitwayen planèt nou an ta dwe konnen sou Astwonomi? [Content in 10 languages]
The Big Ideas in Astronomy is available now available in Haitian, thanks to the NAEC team for Haiti (led by Rulx Narcisse, who is also part of the NOC Haiti Team). The Big Ideas are also available in nine other languages, which you can download for free from this link. 

c) Kainaat Studios [Content in English and Urdu/Hindi]
Kainaat Studios, one of the OAO’s partners, recently published a video on their Urdu/Hindi language YouTube channel related to India’s recent Chandrayaan-3 mission to the Lunar South Pole. Two other missions will also target this region of the Moon. Their latest video, Why is everyone going to the Lunar South Pole?, explains the importance of this region.

In addition, Kainaat Studios produces a special series called Chai on the Moon that covers topics related to humanity’s eventual return to the Moon. In the most recent episode (filmed in English with subtitles in various languages), Salman Hameed talks with Frans von der Dunk about Who Owns the Moon?.

d) Space Scoop: Scoops in Many Languages!
Did you know Space Scoop is available in 40 languages? Thanks to their amazing network of translators, Space Scoop has been multilingual from the very beginning. Check out Space Scoop in Kisawhili, සිංහල, K’iche', and Türkçe, among many more! If you would like to help Space Scoop get translated into more of the world’s languages, email them at info@unawe.org.

9) 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 of the OAO Newsletter into Galician until March 2023 are thanks to Martin Pawley of the Agrupación Astronómica Coruñesa Ío in Spain.

Italian
Translations are thanks to Eleonora Piromalli of AstronomiAmo in Italy.

Japanese
Translations are thanks to Akihiko Tomita, through the Astronomy Translation Network.
You can subscribe to the Japanese newsletter through the Japanese Amateur Astronomers Association or the Japanese Society for Education and Popularization of Astronomy.

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.