IAU Astronomy Outreach Newsletter

2016 #8 April #2

In this newsletter:

  1. From the Editors
  2. CAP 2016 Conference gathers top astronomy communicators in Medellin, Colombia
  3. National Outreach Contact Corner: News from Uruguay
  4. Still time to join in with the Global Astronomy Month celebrations
  5. Transit of Mercury — Activities around the world
  6. Discovery Club — Activities for children in refugee centres
  7. Arts@CERN — COLLIDE International Award
  8. International Symposium on Sun, Earth, and Life
  9. Space Education International Workshop
  10. Meetings & global events for 2016
    1. Recently added
    2. Important deadlines
    3. Upcoming
  11. Contributions to IAU Outreach Newsletter for 2016

 

0) From the Editors

All set for Communicating Astronomy With the Public 2016 edition! Have you had the chance to see the list of keynote speakers who will be in Colombia? A great group of communication experts will gather in Medellin. Stay tuned as we provide more news in the upcoming weeks.

In this issue, learn about Discovery Club — the awesome UNAWE/Leiden University programme for refugee children. And if you want to be a part of art@CERN, make sure not miss the application deadline.

We hope you had a great time during Global Astronomy Month 2016! Even if April is at its end, there are still many activities to explore from Astronomers Without Borders — visit their website and discover them.

Clear Skies!
Lina Canas & Sze-leung Cheung
IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach

 

1) CAP 2016 Conference gathers top astronomy communicators in Medellin, Colombia

From 16 to 20 May 2016, many of the world’s top astronomy communicators will meet in Medellin, Colombia, to exchange views and experiences. Organised by the IAU Commission C2, CAP2016 is the largest event of its kind and continues a series of international gatherings that has been held roughly every two years since 2002. This year CAP2016 is planning around 30 plenary talks, and more than 100 shorter presentations will cover many other topics in astronomy communication.

Learn more: http://bit.ly/1VPDg30

 

2) National Outreach Contact Corner: News from Uruguay

a) International conference — Asteroids, Comets, Meteors (ACM 2017)

From 10–14, April 2017 the international conference, Asteroids, Comets, Meteors (ACM 2017) will take place in Montevideo, Uruguay. This meeting focuses on research into small Solar System bodies and takes place every three years. It has been held at venues across the world.

For further information, please visit http://www.acm2017.uy

b) Planetario Movil Kappa Crucis

During 2015, this mobile planetarium visited 37 small towns in Uruguay, reaching 33 200 participants aged between 4 and 18 years old. The planetarium team provided thousands of diffraction gratings and special lenses to teachers and students, to encourage people to learn more about the nature of light and its spectra. A similar project will run during 2016, but this year the subject will be the Sun, with fulldome projections of solar storms and H-alpha telescope observations.

Learn more here: http://www.kappacrucis.com.uy/planetario/planetario%20digital.htm

c) Transit of Mercury

Several educational institutions, including some secondary school observatories and faculties, are planning public outreach activities to coincide with the transit of Mercury on 9 May.

d) Asociación de Aficionados a la Astronomía — Celebrating 30 years since Halley’s Comet

This Uruguayan historical amateur astronomy association is planning to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the passage of Halley’s Comet in 1986 by organising an exhibition of photos, drawings, newspaper clippings, and other historical material collected from people who participated in the 1986 event. The event will be hosted by the Planetario Municipal de Montevideo (the first planetarium of Latin America).

Learn more here: http://www.aaa.org.uy

 

3) Still time to join in with the Global Astronomy Month celebrations

This year Global Astronomy Month (GAM2016) has been an unprecedented success, and although we are already at 22 April there are still many activities to enjoy until the end of April and beyond.

Find all GAM2016 events and many more activities from Astronomers Without Borders here:: http://astronomerswithoutborders.org/gam2016-programs/program-schedule-2016.html

 

4) Transit of Mercury — Activities around the world

On Monday, 9 May 2016, Mercury will transit the Sun for the first time since 2006. Unfortunately, none of the transit will be visible from eastern Asia, Japan, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. If you are going to watch the transit then share your experience online! Here are some existing activities and resources about the transit:

Stay tuned for more activities and resources about the transit!

 

5) Discovery Club — Activities for children in refugee centres

Discovery Club is an after-school Science, Technology, Arts, Engineering and Mathematics programme that aims to inspire, educate and entertain children (and parents) in refugee centres, while providing them with a sense of much-needed normalcy. Discovery Club harnesses the skills of refugees, local volunteers and organisations to offer a diverse programme for children and create a space for interaction to foster community cohesion between refugee children, parents and host communities.

If you are interested in starting a Discovery Club in a refugee centre or camp please contact: Tibisay Sankatsing Nava (sankatsing@strw.leidenuniv.nl)

Learn more: http://www.unawe.org/getinvolved/discoveryclub/

 

6) Arts@CERN — COLLIDE International Award

Arts@CERN was created in 2011 and is a programme that binds arts, science, and technology. The COLLIDE International Award is an important international residency programme and a recent unique opportunity for artists to spend dedicated time in one of the most significant laboratories in the world, where crucial questions about nature are addressed. Ultimately, COLLIDE proposes to transform the way art and science encounters are understood and to challenge new modes of dialogue and enquiry.

The deadline is 23 May 2016. You can find all the details for participating here: http://arts.cern/collide-international-award

 

7) International Symposium on Sun, Earth, and Life

On 9 March 2016 , Indonesia experienced one of the largest outreach and scientific campaigns ever seen in the country — the Total Solar Eclipse. At an international symposium, hosted by the Institut Teknologi Bandung on 3 and 4 June, there will be a special session dedicated to the total solar eclipse. It will give opportunities to inter-disciplinary scientists in related fields to share, discuss, and collaborate, and at the same time providing solutions to the real world problems, related to the sustainability on Earth. Parallel to the main event the participants will also be able to enjoy the photo exhibition Chasing the Shadows.

Learn more: http://portal.fi.itb.ac.id/issel2016/pages/home.php

 

8) Space Education International Workshop

Every year, the European Space Agency (ESA) organises a training workshop for teachers in association with the Galileo Teacher Training Program (GTTP). In 2016, the event joins forces with the European Project, Space Awareness, for a five-day workshop in space and education. The event will be held in Leiden, the Netherlands, from 18 to 22 October 2016.

Registration opens on 1 May and closes on 15 June 2016. Learn more about the workshop here: http://www.space-awareness.org/en/news/space-education-international-workshop/

 

9) Meetings & global events for 2016

Here is a list of astronomy outreach & education conferences and events for 2016.

a. Recently added

Starlight, Beyond Light Pollution 2016 Workshop
Date: 2–10 July 2016
Location: La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain
More Information: http://www.astro-travels.com/La-Palma-Starlight-2016.html

b. Important deadlines

1st Workshop on Astronomy Beyond the Common Senses for Accessibility and Inclusion
Abstract submission deadline: 15 June 2016
Date: 8 October 2016
Location: Cartagena de Indias, Colombia
More Information: http://wai.unal.edu.co/information/

c. Upcoming

a) Global Astronomy Month
Date: April 2016
Location: All around the world
More information: http://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/

b) Communicating Astronomy with the Public 2016 conference
Date: 16–20 May 2016
Location: Medellín, Colombia
More Information: http://bit.ly/25rvH6Z

c) International Meteor Conference (IMC) 2016
Date: 2—5 June 2016
Location: Egmond, Netherlands
More Information: http://imc2016.imo.net/

d) International Planetarium Society Conference
Date: 19—25 June 2016
Location: Warsaw, Poland
More Information: http://www.ips2016.org/

e) .Astronomy 8
Date: 21—23 June 2016
Location: Oxford, United Kingdom
More Information: http://dotastronomy.com/events/eight/

f) SPIE Astronomical Telescopes +Instrumentation 2016
Date: 26 June – 1 July 2016
Location: Edinburgh International Conference Centre, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
More Information: http://spie.org/SPIE-ASTRONOMY-conference

g) Royal Astronomical Society National Astronomy Meeting 2016
Date: 27 June to 1 July 2016
Location: Nottingham, United Kingdom
More Information: https://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/2730-national-astronomy-meeting-2016

h) Asteroid Day Celebrations
Date: 30 June 2016
Location: Worldwide
More Information: http://asteroidday.org/

i) Starlight, Beyond Light Pollution 2016 Workshop
Date: 2–10 July 2016
Location: La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain
More Information: http://www.astro-travels.com/La-Palma-Starlight-2016.html

j) European Week of Astronomy and Space Science (EWASS)
Date: 4—8 July 2016
Location: Athens, Greece
More Information: http://eas.unige.ch/EWASS2016/

k) International Astronomical Youth Camp (IAYC)
Date: 24 July to 13 August
Location:  Exmoor National Park, Somerset, UK
More information: http://www.iayc.org/

l) 41st COSPAR Scientific Assembly
Date: 30 July — 7 August 2016
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
More Information: https://cosparhq.cnes.fr/content/cospar-2016-0

m) Global Hands-On Universe Conference (GHOU 2016) & Galileo Teacher Training Program (GTTP) International Workshop
Date: 22 to 27 August 2016
Location: Stord, Norway
More information: http://handsonuniverse.org/ghou2016/registration/

n) Twenty Fourth Annual Conference (SEAC 2016)
Date: 12–16 September 2016
Location: Bath, England
More Information: http://www.seac2016.com/

o) International Conference on Artificial Light at Night (ALAN 2016)
Date: 26—28 September 2016
Location: Cluj, Napoca, Romania
More Information: http://www.artificiallightatnight.org/

p) LARIM 2016: XV Latin American Regional IAU Meeting
Date: 3—7 October, 2016
Location: Cartagena de Indias, Colombia
More Information: http://larim.unal.edu.co/

q) 1st Workshop on Astronomy Beyond the Common Senses for Accessibility and Inclusion
Date: 8 October 2016
Location: Cartagena de Indias, Colombia
More Information: http://wai.unal.edu.co/information/

r) World Space Week
Date: 4–10 October
Location: Worldwide
More Information: http://www.worldspaceweek.org/theme/

s) International Observe the Moon Night
Date: 8 October 2016
Location: All around the world
More Information: http://observethemoonnight.org/

t) DPS-EPSC Joint Meeting 2016
Date: 16—21 October 2016
Location: Pasadena, CA, United States
More Information: http://www.epsc2015.eu/

u) IX International Conference on Oriental Astronomy
Date: 15–18 November 2016
Location: Pune, India
More Information: http://icoa2016.tifr.res.in

Have we missed something? Then share your astronomy outreach and education international meetings or events with us via outreach@iau.org.

 

10) Contributions to IAU Outreach Newsletter for 2016

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 2016! If you are organizing 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.