All set for the IAU General Assembly 2018! This year we will have both an exciting scientific program for all participants, and also an outreach program open not only to GA attendees but to everyone. Our team will be at the IAU booth jointly with our sister offices IAU Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) and IAU Office for Young Astronomers (OYA). If you happen to be in Vienna or attending the GA consider dropping by our booth and saying hello!
In this issue, we highlight the IAU General Assembly Public Events, the IAU Office of Astronomy for Development (OAD) online course of project design and the Las Cumbres Observatory Call for Education Partners.
Hope you all had great lunar eclipse observations! We would like to thank everyone for sharing their activities with our team. As you all know we’re based in Tokyo and unfortunately, the weather here didn't help much. Nevertheless, when we start seeing the cool photos everyone was warmly sharing we couldn’t help feeling the luckiest! Thank you!
Wishing you all Happy Reading & Clear Skies!
The IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach Team
1) IAU General Assembly 2018 Hosts Public Astronomy Events in Vienna
The Austrian city of Vienna will host the XXX General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) from 20 to 31 August this year. In addition to welcoming more than 3000 astronomers from over 88 countries, the conference will also offer several events for the local community, free and open to the public.
2) Hands in the Stars: 2nd International Comparative List of Astronomical Words in Sign Languages -- Call for Collaborators
In December 2017, as the result of a long-term project developed by the IAU. Commission C1 Education and Development of Astronomy and its WG3 Astronomy for Equity and Inclusion compiled the first international comparative list of astronomical words in sign languages that currently includes 47 words most commonly used in education. The working group is now issuing a call for partners to issue a new list of words. If you’d like to participate in this project please send an email to beatriz.garcia[at]iteda.cnea.gov.ar and amelia.ortiz[at]uv.es.
3) News From Cyprus & Sri Lanka
Under the Same Eclipse -- a total Lunar Eclipse observed, measured and shared by more than 1000 students in Sri Lanka and Cyprus!
On July 27th, the longest lunar eclipse of the century was observed by groups in Sri Lanka, and in Cyprus by both Greek- and Turkish-Cypriots, in a joint cultural experience where they measured distances from both places using the eclipse. Through this, the organizing teams aim to share the wonders of the Universe we live in and by zooming out, hope to foster a sense of global citizenship, realizing our place in the Universe, together, on one planet. #UnderTheSameEclipse
4) Astronomy for Development Project Design -- online course
This course is designed to provide a helping hand to anyone who intends to submit an application to the Office of Astronomy for Development 's (OAD) Call for Proposals. It provides a brief introduction to Astronomy for Development and introduces the participant to the OAD project cycle, from needs analysis to monitoring and evaluation.
GO-GA’s main objective is to adapt and implement the successful Go-Lab Learning Ecosystem in Africa, first piloting it in three countries and then scaling up. The Go-Lab Ecosystem (or the Go-Lab Sharing and Authoring Platform) targets science teachers from primary and secondary schools and aims to help them enrich their teaching practices with innovative teaching approaches and supportive technical tools. GO-GA will accelerate the adoption of richer learning environments and improved learning outcomes in science and technology, by deploying contextually engaging digital content as well as capacity development for teachers across Africa.
Applications to receive the kit are open until August 31 (in Spanish): www.AstroBVI.org
7) World Space Week: Space Selfie Contest
The World Space Week Association (WSWA) seeks proposals for “space selfies” during Space Selfie Cropped World Space Week, October 4-10, 2018. These will be pictures taken from space of very large WSW events. These images will be taken by Planet -- using its 3-meter resolution satellites.
8) Las Cumbres Observatory Seeks New Education Partners
Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO) is pleased to announce that they are accepting applications for new education partners that will observe astronomical phenomena with LCO telescopes and use the data as part of their educational activities. The team is looking for interesting, engaging, and innovative ideas for astronomy education or outreach projects that make use of LCO's unique capabilities. The team is offering a total of 1,000 hours of observing time on the LCO 0.4-meter telescope network for use between 1 December 2018 and 1 December 2019 for all projects;
j) Starmus Festival V: A Giant Leap
Date: 24–29 June 2019
Location: Bern, Switzerland
More information: https://www.starmus.com/
k) 3rd Workshop on Dissemination and Education of Astronomy (WDEA III)
Dates: 2 July (Solar Eclipse), 4- 5 July 2019
Location: San Juan, Argentina
More information at http://sion.frm.utn.edu.ar/WDEAIII/
Have we missed something? Then share your astronomy outreach and education international meetings or events with us via outreach@iau.org.
10) IAU Astronomy Outreach Newsletter in other languages
- Translations into Serbian are available, by Dr Liliana Gracanin from Serbia: https://twitter.com/IAU_srpski ;
- Translations into Japanese are available, carried out by Akihiko Tomita through the Astronomy Translation Network: http://bit.ly/2xlNyCR. If you want to receive the Japanese newsletter translation, please subscribe to the Japanese Amateur Astronomers Association here: http://www.jaaa-astro.jp/jaaa-ml.html, or the Japanese Society for Education and Popularization of Astronomy here: http://www.tenkyo.net/;
- Translations into Galician are available, by Agrupación Astronómica Coruñesa Ío, in Spain here: http://agrupacionio.com/gl/tag/boletin-iau
- Translations into Spanish are available by:
- Emílio Zuniga, The Association of Amateur Astronomers from León, Nicaragua: http://asafile.blogspot.jp/p/blog-page_12.html;
- Basilio Solís-Castillo, Max-Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, University of Bonn: http://astronomia-para-todos.blogspot.de.
If you are interested in translating our newsletter into your language, please let us know via outreach@iau.org.
11) Contributions to the IAU Outreach Newsletter—looking forward to hearing from you in 2018
Here at the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach, we’re always looking for news about astronomical education and outreach events around the world. Please continue to share your stories with us in 2018! If you are organising 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.
