Regional Offices Activities: Jul-Sept 2024
Andean
- The office continues to support the initiative to establish a Dark Sky Law in Colombia to regulate light pollutions. Several meetings have been hosted to orgnise efforts in this regard.
- The office is supporting the National Astronomical Observatory of Colombia to host the Space Sciences Forum: V Colombia Espacial in December 2024.
- In September, the office supported the organisation of the first astronomical camp at the Silatupue Astronomical and Cultural Observatory to support astrotourism in the indigenous communities of Southern Colombia
East Africa
- EA-ROAD attended the IAU General Assembly 2024 (IAUGA2024), held from 6-15 August 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa
- EA-ROAD evaluated the second stage of OAD proposals for the 2025 call, submitted by the East African region.
- The EA-ROAD coordinator participated in the 19th General Assembly of the Ethiopian Space Science Society (ESSS) and was elected as a Board member of ESSS.
Updates from Regional Countries
- Ethiopia
– Training on Maximizing International Cooperation (30 Sept – 04 Oct 2024)
The Ethiopian Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI), in collaboration with the African Space Leadership Institute (ASLI), organised a training course titled “Maximizing International
Space Cooperation”. The course, which focused on space cooperation, diplomacy, and policy, commenced on September 30th with a space briefing and concluded on October 4th in celebration of UN World Space Week.
– ESSS General Assembly (July 20-21, 2024)
The 19th General Assembly of the ESSS, Ethiopia’s largest space-related event, brought together over 30 branch associations, institutional members, schools, and individual space enthusiasts. The assembly featured a scientific session with research presentations, a youth session for students, and a business session to discuss the society’s progress. It served as a platform for knowledge sharing, networking, and fostering collaboration within Ethiopia’s growing space community.
– Summer Space Training (August 18-26, 2024)
The Summer Space Training program provided practical, hands-on experience in space science and technology. This year’s edition included a three-day session covering Astronomy (Observational Astronomy), Aerospace Engineering, and Satellite Technology. The sessions were
highly interactive, featuring hands-on activities, practical instructions, and virtual reality (VR) experiences.– Observe the Moon Night – YouTube Livestream (September 17, 2024)In celebration of International Observe the Moon Night, ESSS hosted a YouTube livestream to discuss the moon and its features. The livestream garnered 600 views on the ESSS YouTube channel, offering a valuable platform for lunar education and public engagement. - Kenya
– Transient Array Radio Telescope Installation and Training Workshop (26-30 August 2024)
The Transient Array Radio Telescope (TART), a 24-element synthesis array radio telescope, was installed in Kenya. The system continuously monitors the sky, detecting transient events such as satellites, near-Earth objects, and high-energy cosmic rays. The installation was accompanied by a week-long training workshop held at the Technical University of Kenya, hosted by the Kenya Space Agency (KSA) in collaboration with the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) and the Electronic Research Foundation of New Zealand. Researchers and astronomers from various Kenyan universities attended the workshop.– Turkana Basin Institute (TBI) – Round 2 (28 September – 11 October 2024)The Turkana Basin Institute in Ileret is hosting its second astronomy school, offering training in astronomy and data reduction techniques. The initiative is a collaboration between the Development in Africa with Radio Astronomy (DARA) project and the Kenya Optical Telescope Initiative (KOTI). - Tanzania
– Astronomy Training Activitiesa) A one-day IAU-OAE TTP22 teacher training was held in Tanga for more than 20 teachers, with a stargazing activity at night.b) A second one-day IAU-NASE teacher training was conducted in Dodoma, with local tutors attending in person and online tutors joining from abroad.c) An astronomy exposure lecture and stargazing activity for secondary school girls was held in Morogoro.– Bruno’s Remote Telescope for Africa InitiativeTanzania has recently joined Bruno’s Remote Telescope for Africa initiative, along with Madagascar and Ethiopia. This project involves the setup of telescopes and accessories in France, belonging to Bruno Cabasson, a retired aerospace engineer from Thales Alenia. UsingTeamViewer software, participants can access the Stellarium software on Bruno’s computer to control the telescopes and observe various celestial objects.– IAU General Assembly Participation (5-15 August 2024)Tanzania participated in the first African IAU General Assembly held in Cape Town, with three Tanzanian participants presenting their work.– IAU-OAO Cascade Seed Grant AwardA Tanzanian secondary school teacher has recently been awarded a Cascade Seed Grant from the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO).
North America
- NA ROAD participated at the IAU-GA. It was great to see, meet and talk in person with other regional offices and with the OAD.
- We are looking for a full-time office coordinator who can help us to diversify our portfolio within the region and abroad. The solicitation of applications is open.
- The second cohort of the Women’s and Girls in Astronomy Program (WGAP) are developing their projects and by the end of the year, we will have 10 projects across the north American region that has used astronomy for development as a tool to help local communities. New for 2024, the WGAP projects will be supported by a mentoring program. Each project will have a mentor who will help them to reach their full potential. Based on their own experiences leading their 2023 WGAP, mentors will have meetings with their mentees to identify areas of support and guidance for the development of their initiatives. Early next year, a report will be produced and shared with everyone. For more information, please visit: https://naroad.astro4dev.org/na-road-projects/women-and-girls-astronomy-program/
- The NA-ROAD is planning to attend the American Astronomical Society Winter Meeting in Maryland, January 12-16. At the meeting we will be presenting, in collaboration with Kevin Govender, the NA ROAD and OAD current initiatives and updates. We will also have a theater presentation about the WGAP 2024 cohort.
- Next month, the NA ROAD in collaboration with the Mexican Office of Astronomy for Outreach (OAO-NOC-MX), Mexican Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE-NAEC-MX) and the Astrofísicos en Acción is leading a series of events to celebrate the “World Science Day for Peace and Development” in Mexico. The events will be disseminated in Spanish and English subtitles will be available. For more information, please visit: https://naroad.astro4dev.org/na-road-projects/world-science-day/
South East Asia
- Attended International Planetarium Society (IPS) in Berlin
- MHESI fair, a science fair where astronomy lab is held, including displaying moonrock from China. 200k+ participants. 22-28 Jul 2024
- National Science Week, science week exhibition.
- Attended the IAU General Assembly 2024 (IAUGA2024), held from 6-15 August 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa
- Director of NARIT, Saran Poshyachinda received ODE Outreach prize award for outreach work in Thailand.
- MoU signing, public lectures, personnel training between NARIT-BIUST in Botswana.
- Workshop between NARIT and Science Center Singapore staff 4-6 Sep 2024.
- Arranged The 5th Thailand-UK Python+Astronomy Summer School 2024 (ThaiPASS’24), with 30 participants from around SEA region 9-13 Sep 2024
- The first ITCA teacher training workshop series in collaboration with Malaysia 18-19 Sep 2024.
- Southeast Asia Planetarium, Education and Outreach conference (SEA-PEO2024) is underway! Getting ready to host the first conference of its kind in SEA in 25-28 Nov 2024.
- Preparing to announce the K-12 Astronomy Education Conference in Asia to be held in 1-5 Sep 2025
South West And Central Asia
- Padova, Italy – EAS Annual Meeting 2024; Participation of 8 Armenian representatives, including SWCA ROAD staff members: Areg Mickaelian, Gor Mikayelyan, Gayane Baleyan and Meline Asryan
- Byurakan, Armenia – Astronomy School Teachers Training Workshop 2024 (TTP), participation of 28 teachers; in collaboration with IAU OAE, NASE and GTTP
- Cape Town, South Africa – IAU General Assembly XXXII; Participation of Areg Mickaelian; talk at OAD session, etc.
- Byurakan, Armenia – Science camp of “ArmElectronic” school of Robotics and Engineering Skills (in frame of IAU OAD Flagship Project 3)
- Byurakan, Armenia – Perseids Meteor Shower – Public Event at BAO
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 17th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) 2024. Participation of Armenian, Georgian, Iranian and other regional teams. 5 gold medals by Iranian, 3 bronze medals by Armenian, and 1 bronze by Georgian participants. Seyedshayan Khalooeitafti (Iran) recognized as the best student in Observation Exams.
- Special Astrophysical Observatory (SAO), Russia – EAAS Annual Meeting and EAAS Council Meeting; Areg Mickaelian was re-elected as EAAS Council member and EAAS Vice-Chair
- Byurakan, Armenia – “Sky Fest 2024”; by Kaspersky Lab
- Byurakan, Armenia – Knowledge Day – Public Event
- Byurakan, Armenia – 9th Byurakan International Summer School (9BISS) on “Astronomy as the leader of Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Sciences”, 32 students (including 22 foreign) from 7 countries (Armenia, Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Jordan, France, Poland) and 7 lecturers from Armenia, Russia and France
- Byurakan, Armenia – IAU South West and Central Asian (SWCA) 4th Regional Astronomical Workshop (4RAW), participation of 35 scientists from 9 countries (Armenia, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Russia, Germany, China)
- Byurakan, Armenia – Viktor Ambartsumian’s birthday: Astronomy Day in Armenia – Public Event
- Abastumani, Georgia – XVI Georgian-Armenian (Abastumani-Byurakan) Astronomical Colloquium, participation of 13 Armenian scientists.
- Signing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Abastumani Astrophysical Observatory (AbAO) and Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO)
Southern Africa
- Participated in the IAUGA2024 in Cape Town South Africa from 5-15 August 2024.
- Celebrated the 10th Anniversary of SAROAD during the IAUGA2024 in Cape Town on 12th August 2024.
- The office participated in the OAD Stage 2 call for proposals by submitting input from the region.
- Selection of DARA basic training in the SKA 8 partner countries ( Kenya, Ghana, Madagascar, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia) was successfully done and the successful candidates are undergoing the training first set of the training.
- DARA sent a call for sabbaticals to the 8 SKA partner countries.
- DARA call for Postdoc across the African partner countries (APCs) was issued with successful candidates getting the award. The second call has been issued for the countries who were not successful.
- There is a current call for MSc scholarship in all APCs under DARA project.
- Mauritius and Kenya installed their TART telescope.
- Conducted an outreach activity themed “Malawi Space Stars”
- Mobilization of country coordinators and filling of vacant positions commenced and we are now only remaining with 4 countries to join the team.
Plans for the 4th Quarter
1. SAROAD is undergoing self assessment pending review in 2025.
2. Consolidate the Cultural Astronomy activities and document them from all SAROAD countries.
3. World space week preparations are ongoing in SAROAD countries. One highlight is the visit of the ESA Astronaut Prof. Christer Fuglesang. He is visiting under FAST4Future project which is running in both SAROAD and WAROAD regions. He will open the launch of World Space Week on 4 th October 2024 in Botswana at Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) and close on 10th October 2024 in Zambia at University of Zambia (UNZA).
4. Continue with the mobilization of the country coordinators to fill the vacant positions.