IYA2009 Updates
European Astronomical Society announces IYA2009 projects.
22 December 2008
The European Astronomical Society (EAS) has received over 25 applications from IYA2009 projects seeking their support. The difficult process of whittling them down has been completed, and the result are four initiatives that show great potential. With the support of EAS and IYA2009, they will greatly contribute toward the success of the year. The projects are:
An astrophotography exhibition, "A journey through the universe".
The Austrian organising committee for IYA2009 has prepared an online picture gallery of outstanding astronomical photographs made by amateur and professional Austrian astronomers. This exhibition will be displayed under the arcades of the main building of the University of Vienna, at the University of Innsbruck, and also at various other locations in Austria.
"From Earth To The Universe" exhibition in Portugal.
This project aims to implement the FETTU project in mainland Portugal in numerous cities, and on the Portuguese island of Madeira. The images of wonderful astronomical objects seek to bring the beauty of the heavens to a wide audience.
"Tales of the Stars" storybook for children.
Developed within the framework of the Universe Awareness Cornerstone and produced by UNAWE-Spain. The tales in the book originate from mythologies of different cultures: Greek and Roman, Arabic, Maya, Aztec and others. Each story is related to an astronomical concept and a short scientific explanation accompanies each tale for parents and teachers. The explanations relate what people saw in those times with what we know today.
Ukranian Internet-telescope.
Among the initiatives of the Ukrainian Astronomical Association devoted to IYA2009 is a project providing online access to the Internet-telescope of the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine for the pupils of schools of the Kyiv region. There will also be online astronomy lessons and international teleconferences with pupils from other European countries.
100 Hours of Astronomy - Information Pack
19 December 2008
IYA2009 Newsletter
16 December 2008
Welcome to the latest IYA2009 newsletter. 15 days left to IYA2009!
News
Welcome, new Nodes
IYA2009 would like to say "hello!" to the new Nodes, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Andorra, Moldova, Mali, Azerbaijan, SARA, IMO, and EurAstro. They have chosen an exciting time to join the effort, with global launches just around the corner.
Support IYA2009: it's the law!
The Spanish Congress of Deputies has proposed a law supporting astronomy and IYA2009. For more information (in Spanish), follow the link: http://www.iaa.es/IYA09/index.php/es/noticias_aia_ya2009/el_aia_iya2009_en_el_congreso_de_los_diputados
Good news for school children in the UK
From next year, pupils in 1 in 4 secondary schools will get close up views of the Moon, planets and the stars, in one of the largest astronomy outreach projects ever seen in the UK. The Society for Popular Astronomy (SPA), Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) have teamed up to give free telescopes to 1000 schools from early in 2009. Now all they need do is find a way to part the clouds!
For details, follow this link: http://www.ras.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1523&Itemid=2
Royal Australian Mint launches IYA2009 coins
Alongside telescopes looking up into the night sky, the Royal Australian Mint launched its newest collectible coins at a unique event on Friday, 7 November 2008. The Mint joined with the Canberra Astronomical Society to create a night of star-gazing in celebration of IYA2009. An amazing light show of local astronomers' photography was also projected across the walls of the Mint building.
More information is available here: http://www.coinnews.net/2008/11/09/royal-australian-mint-shoots-for-the-stars-with-2009-international-year-of-astronomy-coins-4499/Events
IYA2009 Secretariat: Welcome Lee
We would like to welcome Lee Pullen aboard the IYA2009 Secretariat. Lee is a free lance science communicator based in the United Kingdom is giving us a helping hand producing and editing content for IYA2009.
Resources
Sky & Telescope IYA2009 article online
Popular astronomy magazine Sky & Telescope features an impressive feature about IYA2009 in its January issue. It is also available online here: http://media.skytonight.com/documents/200901082086.pdf
New images available
To assist with your projects, new images of Galileo Galilei's instruments, books and records now available on the IYA2009 website. Fell free to download and use them!
http://www.astronomy2009.org/resources/multimedia/images/viewall/
Official poster now with additional languages
The IYA2009 poster has been redesigned to cater for the six official UN languages. Download them from this link: http://www.astronomy2009.org/resources/posters/viewall/
Winter Solstice Sunrise - IYA2009 Irish National Node
It is almost time for the winter solstice sunrise live feed from Newgrange, courtesy of the IYA2009 Irish Node. This is the first event specifically celebrating IYA2009 and it is hoped that many members of the public and the astronomy community will take this opportunity to experience the magic of the sunrise as seen by our neolithic ancestors. To find out more, visit their website at http://www.astronomy2009.ie/, or contact Michael Redfern by e-mailing mike.redfern@nuigalway.ie.
Project Updates
Dawn of the IYA2009
The Solar Physics Group have certainly been putting the hours in, and have created an excellent way to start the new year. "Dawn of the IYA2009" is a global campaign of Sun observation. Also organised by Centro de Astrofísica da Universidade do Porto, Portugal, the idea is that, starting at local noon, 1 January 2009, everyone with means to (safely) observe the Sun gathers outside science centres, town halls, shopping centres or simply their own streets, and present the Sun and the IYA2009 to the world.
Please get involved in this project, and help it achieve great success! http://www.astro.up.pt/caup/eventos/dawn2009/index.php
Special Task Group: Solar Physics website on-line: www.solarastronomy2009.org
New Cornerstone website
Dark Skies Awareness has a noble aim: raising the level of public knowledge about adverse impacts of excess artificial lighting on local environments, and helping more people appreciate the ongoing loss of a dark night sky for much of the world's population.
Toward this end, a range of resource materials has been developed. These include a new website, which you can view now by clicking here: http://www.darkskiesawareness.org/
Cosmic Diary ready to launch
The Cosmic Diary Cornerstone project is on schedule for a January 1 opening. This initiative sees over 50 professional astronomers, including those from NASA, ESA, ESO and JAXA, blog throughout the year about their lives and work. The aim is to give the public insight into what astronomers really do, and help demystify science. Many participating astronomers have also written feature articles, which will be posted throughout the year.
You can help the Cosmic Diary project by advertising it wherever possible, and encourage people to log on and read the latest updates. Member of the public can even comment on posts, and ask the astronomers questions.
The website's address is www.cosmicdiary.org. Remember that it will go live on 1 January 2009, launching IYA2009 in style!
Universe Awareness
The December issue of the UNAWE Newsletter is out. Features include information useful for Brazilians, Indonesians, Venezuelans, the Irish, and many others! You can download the 12.6MB PDF version here:
http://unawe.org/site/images/newsletters/unawe_newsletter_december_2008.pdf
100 Hours of Astronomy: New Coordinator
A message from Mike Simmons (100 Hours of Astronomy Chair):
I am very pleased to announce that Jennie McCormick of Auckland, New Zealand has joined us as the coordinator of the 100 Hours of Astronomy IYA2009 cornerstone project. Jennie brings experience from the astronomy, educational outreach and business communities. She is already the co-coordinator for the 100 Hours of Astronomy in New Zealand so she knows the project well. She is also Her accomplishments over more than 20 years of organizing conferences and events are too numerous to list. Jennie can be reached by email at farmcoveobs@xtra.co.nz.
Two Small Pieces of Glass - A planetarium show for IYA2009
The planetarium component of the History of the Telescope project is moving along and will be ready for distribution in late January 2009. Two Small Pieces of Glass - The Amazing Telescope is being produced as both a traditional planetarium show and a digital full dome show. More information: http://www.400years.org/planetarium.php
IYA2009 Wikipedia entry updated!
IYA2009 Wikipedia entry has been updated: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Year_of_Astronomy.
Maybe your group can follow this step and help improve the content and quality of the astronomy entries on Wikipedia in your language.
With 2009 almost upon us the workload can seem daunting, but please hang in there and help us promote astronomy like never before! If you need any assistance, remember that the Secretariat is always available for you.
Kind regards,
Pedro, Mariana and Lee
IYA2009 Secretariat
Two Small Pieces of Glass - A planetarium show for IYA2009
13 December 2008
Two Small Pieces of Glass - A planetarium show for IYA2009
The planetarium component of the History of the Telescope project is moving along and will be ready for distribution in late January of 2009. Two Small Pieces of Glass - The Amazing Telescope is being produced as both a traditional planetarium show and a digital full dome show. This program was announced back in 2007 in the June issue of the Planetarian, and I presented an update on it at the IPS Conference in Chicago this past summer.
You can see clips and get a synopsis of the show at
http://www.400years.org/planetarium.php
The show is 25 minutes in length and follows two students as they interact with a female astronomer at a local star party. Along the way the students learn how telescopes work, the history of telescopes, and major discoveries
made by these instruments. Imiloa Astronomy Center, Buhl Planetarium at the Carnegie Science Center, and Interstellar Studios have partnered on this program. Mirage IIID is providing computer graphics, animations, and compositing the program. The soundtrack was recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra.
The traditional dome version will be distributed free to all International Planetarium Society (IPS) members on DVD's containing still images (for slides, all-skies, and panoramas), video clips for standard video projectors, audio, script and production notes. You must be an IPS member by January 5th to receive this program!
The digital full dome program will be made available to IPS members for a small cost of hard drives/remastery. The expected price is $300-1000 US for a permanent license. To receive this version of the show, you can sign up at the website above, and in early January you will be contacted with the final price. Domemasters will be distributed at 1K, 2K and 4K resolution.
NOTE: You must be an IPS member to be eligible for this program!
If you have any questions about the program, please feel free to contact Shawn Laatsch (slaatsch@imiloahawaii.org) or James Hughes (HughesJ@carnegiesciencecenter.org).
Shawn Laatsch
Planetarium Manager & IPS Treasurer
Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii
600 Imiloa Place
Hilo, HI 96720
Ph. +1 (808) 969-9735
Fax +1 (808) 969-9748
Email: slaatsch@imiloahawaii.org
www.imiloahawaii.org
www.ips-planetarium.org
100 Hours of Astronomy: New Coordinator
8 December 2008
A message from Mike Simmons (100 Hours of Astronomy Chair):
I am very pleased to announce that Jennie McCormick of Auckland, New Zealand has joined us as the coordinator of the 100 Hours of Astronomy IYA2009 cornerstone project. Jennie brings experience from the astronomy, educational outreach and business communities. She is already the co-coordinator for the 100 Hours of Astronomy in New Zealand so she knows the project well. She is also Her accomplishments over more than 20 years of organizing conferences and events are too numerous to list.
Jennie can be reached by email at farmcoveobs@xtra.co.nz.
Welcome Jennie!
December 4th: Polar Day Focusing on Polar Astronomy
2 December 2008
DECEMBER 4th: POLAR DAY FOCUSING ABOVE THE POLAR REGIONS
MEDIA ADVISORY
On December 4th, 2008, the International Polar Year 2007-8 (IPY) will launch its seventh ‘International Polar Day' focusing on research Above the Polar Regions, including meteorology, atmospheric science, astronomy, and the view of the polar regions from space. This event coincides with the start of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA).
During the week of December 4th, IPY scientists will make themselves available to discuss their research and answer questions from university students, the media, general public, and school children. Activities include live events, a world-wide ‘launch a virtual weather balloon' activity, related educational activities, and access to latest information about polar meteorological and space research and polar observations from satellites. One event will connect researchers in the Arctic and Antarctic and experts around the world with students in European classrooms and a Planetarium in Alexandria, Egypt.
A special webpage, www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/abovethepoles, has been prepared with information for Press and Educators, details of IPY weather and space projects, activity sheets, live events, profiles and contacts for researchers from many countries, images, background information, and useful links and resources.
Background:
Polar weather, with extreme cold, fierce winds, and constant wintertime darkness, remains a deterrent and a threat to modern researchers. The polar regions provide crucial cooling processes for our global climate system, and polar weather in both hemispheres has linkages to weather as far away as the tropics. The atmosphere over ice- and snow-covered surfaces has unique properties, and a remarkable sequence of reactions in the snow and ice influence the chemistry of polar air. Auroras in both hemispheres provide a glimpse of planetary-scale geomagnetic processes in the outer atmosphere. Views of polar ice and snow from satellites provide some of the most compelling evidence of planetary change.
International Year of Astronomy 2009:
The International Polar Year 2007-8 and International Year of Astronomy 2009 share a commitment to advance our understanding of the world around us, and engage the public in these explorations. The vision of the IYA2009 is to help the citizens of the world rediscover their place in the Universe through the day and night time sky - and thereby engage a personal sense of wonder and discovery. All humans should realize the impact of astronomy and basic sciences on our daily lives, and understand better how scientific knowledge can contribute to a more equitable and peaceful society. The aim of the IYA2009 is to stimulate worldwide interest, especially among young people, in astronomy and science under the central theme ‘The Universe, Yours to Discover'. IYA2009 events and activities will promote a greater appreciation of the inspirational aspects of astronomy that embody an invaluable shared resource for all nations.
More information: www.astronomy2009.org
IPY Celebrations
On February 25th, 2009, as the formal observational period of IPY draws to a close, the IPY Joint Committee will issue a report on the State of Polar Research. In conjunction with this release, IPY sponsors ICSU and WMO are pleased to announce an IPY Celebration, including a press conference, an IPY presentation, and an international photographic exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland. The State of Polar Research report will present an overview of the collective impact of international and interdisciplinary research that has been achieved through the International Polar Year 2007-8, and will outline the future for polar research. For more information about activities at this time, please contact Rhian Salmon (ipy.ras@gmail.com).
About IPY and International Polar Days
The International Polar Year 2007-8 is a large international and interdisciplinary coordinated research effort focused on the polar regions. It is planned and sponsored by the International Council for Science (ICSU) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). An estimated 50,000 participants from more than 60 countries are involved in research as diverse as anthropology and astronomy, health and history, and genomics and glaciology. This IPY was launched in March 2007, and will continue through early 2009. During this IPY, a regular sequence of International Polar Days will raise awareness and provide information about particular and timely aspects of the polar regions. These Polar Days include press releases, contacts to experts in several languages, activities for teachers, on-line community participation, web-conferencing events, and links to researchers in the Arctic and Antarctic. Previous Days have focused on Sea Ice, Ice Sheets, Changing Earth, Land and Life, and People. The next Polar Day, in March 2009, will focus on Polar Oceans. More information about International Polar Days can be found at:
www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/international_polar_days/
Contact:
International Polar Year Activities:
Dr Rhian Salmon, IPY IPO Education and Outreach Coordinator
ipy.ras@gmail.com, +447711181509
Dr David Carlson, IPY IPO Director, ipy.djc@gmail.com, +447715371759
International Year of Astronomy 2009:
Pedro Russo, IYA2009 Coordintaor
prusso@eso.org, +49 (0) 89 320 06 195
www.astronomy2009.org
For more information and contact details, please visit the IPY ‘Above The Poles' webpage:www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/abovethepoles
IYA2009 SPoCs Questionnaire Report available on-line.
2 December 2008
The IYA2009 SPoCs Questionnaire Report is now available in PDF format: http://www.astronomy2009.org/resources/documents/detail/SPoCs_questionnaire_report/
Search IYA2009 Updates
National Nodes: 148
Organisational Nodes: 40
Organisational Associates:33
National Websites: 111
Cornerstone Projects: 12
Special Task Groups: 11
Special Projects:16
Official Products:8
Media Partners:22
IYA2009 Patron
