Cornerstone Projects
The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is supported by eleven Cornerstone projects. These are global programs of activities centered on specific themes and are some of the projects that will help to achieve IYA2009's main goals. Whether it is the support and promotion of women in astronomy, the preservation of dark-sky sites around the world or educating and explaining the workings of the Universe to millions, the eleven Cornerstones will be key elements in the success of IYA2009.
Following are the Cornerstone projects planned for implementation in Trinidad and Tobago:
100 Hours of Astronomy
100 Hours of Astronomy is a worldwide astronomy event scheduled for April 2-5, 2009. The main goal is to have as many people as possible throughout the world look through a telescope just as Galileo did for the first time 400 years ago. Plans include special webcasts, students and teachers activities, a schedule of events at science centers, planetariums and science museums as well as 24 hours of sidewalk astronomy, which will provide the opportunity for public observing sessions to as many people as possible.
In Trinidad and Tobago, this event will comprise open days at various locations, including Tobago with informal talks, video presentation and telescope viewing (even during the day, solar filters can be employed to safely give views of the sun).
Galileoscope
Who does not remember the first time they looked at the Moon through a telescope and were amazed by the details of the mountains and craters? The same is true for Jupiter's cloud belts and its Galilean moons, Saturn's rings and remote sparkling star clusters. Observing through a telescope for the first time is an experience that shapes our view of the sky and the Universe.
This IYA2009 program wants to share a personal experience of practical astronomical observation with as many people as possible across the world. It is collaborating with the US IYA2009 National Node to develop a simple, accessible, easy-to-assemble and easy-to-use telescope that can be distributed by the millions. In theory, every participant in an IYA2009 event should be able to take home one of these little telescopes, enabling them to observe with an instrument similar to Galileo's.
The National Node will be providing Galileoscopes to the Trinidad & Tobago public over the course of 2009. Each should cost less than $100 and will include a small guide and project booklet developed by The Trinidad and Tobago Astronomical Society. Corporate sponsorship is currently being sought to enable the distribution of Galileoscopes to interested students in Trinidad and Tobago at significantly reduced costs.
Portal to the Universe
The Portal to the Universe provides a global, one-stop portal for online astronomy content, serving as an index, aggregator and a social networking site for astronomy content providers, laypeople, press, educators, decision-makers and scientists. It features news, image, event and video aggregation; a comprehensive directory of observatories, facilities, astronomical societies, amateur astronomy societies, space artists, science communication universities, Web 2.0 collaborative tools. and a range of "widgets" to tap into existing "live data".
The vision for the Portal is threefold:
Enabling access: To aggregate (pull) from content providers, including all astronomy-related dynamic content (e.g. RSS feeds of blogs, images, news, etc.) and distribute (push) to users.
Indexing and archiving: To collect and maintain a central repository of useful information, including resources such as educational materials and addresses for all astronomy stakeholders such as amateur clubs, planetariums and observatories.
Enabling communication and collaboration: To create and maintain a network of all stakeholders, including a social network for everyone interested in astronomy.
Dark Skies Awareness
The arc of the Milky Way seen from a truly dark site is part of our planet's cultural and natural heritage. It is now more urgent than ever to preserve and protect dark night skies in places such as urban cultural landscapes, national parks and sites connected with astronomical observations, as well as to support the goals of UNESCO's thematic initiative, Astronomy and World Heritage, to preserve sites of astronomical importance for posterity.
The ongoing loss of dark night skies for much of the world's population is a serious and growing issue that not only impacts astronomical research, but also human health, ecology, safety, security, economics and energy conservation. According to the United Nations, 2008 will be the first year in which 3.3 billion people, over half the world's population, will live in cities. With the growth of large cities in Africa and Asia, the number of people living in dense urban areas could climb to 5 billion by 2030. As cities grow, so does their impact on the global environment.
For this Cornerstone project the IAU will collaborate with the US National Optical Astronomy Observatory, representatives of the International Dark-Sky Association, the Starlight Initiative and other national and international partners in dark sky and environmental education on several related themes. The focus will be on three main citizen-scientist programs to measure local levels of light pollution. These programs will take the form of "star hunts" or "star counts", providing people with a fun and direct way to acquire heightened awareness about light pollution through firsthand observations of the night sky. Together the three programs will cover the entire International Year of Astronomy 2009, namely GLOBE at Night (in March), the Great World Wide Star Count (in October) and How Many Stars (January, February, April through September, November and December).
In Trinidad and Tobago, CARINA in conjunction with other involved partners plans to stage an essay competition for schools on the subject of the importance of preservation of Dark Skies.
Galileo Teacher Training Programme
The International Year of Astronomy 2009 provides an excellent opportunity to engage the formal education community in the excitement of astronomical discovery as a vehicle for improving the teaching of science in classrooms around the world. To help train teachers in effective astronomy communication and to sustain the legacy of IYA2009, the IAU is embarking on a unique global effort to empower teachers by developing the Galileo Teacher Training Program. The goal is to create a worldwide network of certified "Galileo Ambassadors" by 2012. These Ambassadors will train "Galileo Master Teachers" in the effective use and transfer of astronomy education tools and resources into classroom science curricula. The Galileo Teachers will be equipped to train other teachers in these methodologies. Through workshops, online training tools and basic education kits, the products and techniques developed by this program can be adapted to reach locations with few resources of their own.
To address this problem and to sustain the legacy of IYA2009, the IAU - in collaboration with the National Nodes and leaders in the field such as the Global Hands-On Universe project, the US National Optical Astronomy Observatory and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific - is embarking on a unique global effort to empower teachers by developing the Galileo Teacher Training Program (GTTP).
The GTTP goal is to create a worldwide network of certified "Galileo Ambassadors" by 2012. These Ambassadors will train "Galileo Master Teachers" in the effective use and transfer of astronomy education tools and resources into classroom science curricula. The Galileo Teachers will be equipped to train other teachers in these methodologies, leveraging the work begun during IYA2009 in classrooms everywhere. Through workshops, online training tools and basic education kits, the products and techniques developed by this programme can be adapted to reach locations with few resources of their own, as well as computer-connected areas that can take advantage of access to robotic optical and radio telescopes, webcams, astronomy exercises, cross-disciplinary resources, image processing and digital universes (web and desktop planetariums).
Although this program will be difficult to implement within the constraints of the local education system, CARINA hopes to be able to develop a toolkit for primary schools to enable teachers to easily and effectively communicate key astronomy concepts to their students as part of general science education. This will be distributed to schools and to teacher training colleges, perhaps supported by a workshop to familiarise teachers with the tools and their application.
From Earth to the Universe
From Earth to the Universe will bring wonderful astronomical images to a wider audience in non-traditional venues. In delivering these images and the science behind them to public parks, metro stations, art centers and other locations, it is hoped that individuals who might normally ignore or even dislike astronomy, or science in general will be engaged.
In Trinidad and Tobago, this will take the form of a traveling photographic exhibition moving between locations such as malls, the airport, libraries etc.
Access the Project Website here: