Planning for US IYA 2009 Susana Deustua American

Planning for US IYA 2009 Susana Deustua American Astronomical Society Co-chair US IYA Program Committee

American Astronomical Society • , individual members, ~1, 000 foreign affiliate members. • Founded in 1899 • Publishes Ap. J, Ap. J Supp, Ap. J Letters, AJ, BAAS • Activities – 5 Divisions: Solar Physics, Dynamical Astronomy, Planetary Sciences, High Energy Astrophysics, Historical Astronomy – Meetings: two/year, plus Divisional mtgs. – Public Policy – Education • Member society of the American Institute of Physics (APS, AAPT, AGU)

The US Astronomy Community: GROUND • Ground-based astronomy primarily funded by the National Science Foundation, other gov’t agencies and private sources • National Observatories (NOAO, NRAO, NSO, NAIC) • International Facilities (Gemini, SOAR) • Private observatories (Mc. Donald, Keck, Las Campanas, HET, Cf. A) – TSIP • Future Facilities – Near Term ALMA – Medium Term LSST – Long Term GSMT/T

The US Astronomy Community: SPACE • Space-based facilities funded by NASA • Great Observatories: HST, Spitzer, Chandra • Medium to Large Missions: Navigator, New Horizons, WMAP, SWIFT, HETE, FUSE • Small to Medium: RHESSI, sub-orbital payloads • Future: – Near Term: SOFIA, Herschel, Planck – Medium Term: JWST – Long Term: JDEM, LISA, SIM

The US Astronomy Community: Amateurs • Robust amateur-astronomy community ~400, 000 backyard astronomers ~750 astronomy clubs • Astronomical League • AAVSO (American Association of Variable Star Observers) • ALPO (Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers) • ASP (Astronomical Society of the Pacific) • IOTA (International Occultation Timing Association) • SAS (Society for Astronomical Sciences) • Etc.

Vibrant Education and Public Outreach in Astronomy • National Observatories (visitor centers, teacher programs, press releases…) • NASA Centers (teacher programs, web, press releases, curriculum materials, etc. ) • Private Observatories (Mc. Donald most active (Star. Date); Hawai’i ramping up with Imiloa) • Professional Societies: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, AAVSO, AAS, International Dark. Sky Association • Astronomical League

Vibrant Education and Public Outreach in Astronomy • Planetariums and Science Centers (Adler, AMNH, Smithsonian, Exploratorium, Boston Museum of Science, Griffith Observatory • National Parks (visitor centers, docent programs) • Astronomy Clubs • Boy Scouts • Girl Scouts • After-school programs

Coordinating IYA 2009 in the U. S. • Program Committee – Develop themes and activities to support IYA goals – Appreciation of astronomy’s rich scientific and cultural role throughout human history – 15 members from leading organizations that engage in astronomy education and public outreach in the United States, plus liaisons to Canada and Mexico – Co-chairs Doug Isbell & Susana Deustua • Development Committee – Secure funding and resources to implement IYA activities – 10 members from academia, industry, organizations – Chair Peter Stockman

Schedule of US IYA Activities • Planning Meetings – – Washington, DC, early May, 2007 AAS Meeting in Honolulu, HI, May 2007 ASP meeting in Chicago, IL, September 7 -8 AAS Meeting in Austin, TX, January 2008 - First PR event • Proposals to Gov’t agencies • Proposals to private foundations, companies

US IYA 2009 Goals , Themes, Activities Doug Isbell • Co-Chair, US Program Committee • Associate Director for Public Affairs & Educational Outreach, National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) disbell@noao. edu

GOAL for US IYA 2009 “To offer an engaging astronomy experience to every person in the country. ”

Six Major US Themes F Looking Through a Telescope F Dark Skies Are a Universal Resource F Astronomy in Arts, Entertainment & Storytelling F Research Experience for Students, Teachers, and Citizen-Scientists F Telescope Building & Optics Challenges F Sharing the Universe Through New Technology

Looking Through a Telescope F Star parties F Sidewalk astronomy F Mobile telescope vans F Binocular experiences F Remote telescopes (north + south) F Observing with spacecraft? > 100 million first-time viewers worldwide? ? ?

Dark Skies Are a Universal Resource F GLOBE at Night 2009 - “classic” star counting and digital sky-quality meters F Coordination with Earth-orbiting satellites F Related issues: energy use, health, etc. F Efforts in individual cities FEx. : Sydney, Australia, “lights out”

Arts, Entertainment & Storytelling F Documentaries F Hollywood productions (TV, movies) F Marketing opportunities F Native cultures F Public lectures F Galileo impersonators!

Research Experiences for Students, Teachers, and Citizen-Scientists F Observing at telescopes F Remote observing & image processing F Data mining F Work with members of NASA/ESA science teams (Spitzer under way) F Coordinated ground-space-amateur observing?

Telescope Building & Optics Challenges F “Telescope amnesty” F A new telescope kit? ($5 -10 each x 1 million copies? ) F Hands-On Optics F Contests & Science Festivals F Internships with big telescope projects?

Sharing the Universe Through New Technology F Planetaria F Science Centers F Blogging and Podcasting F You. Tube -type portals for self-made videos (contests? ) F Videoconferencing F RSS news feed F Real-time Web counter of IYA participation?

US IYA 2009 Program ◊ Each theme supported by 1 -3 working groups of 6 -8 people each (professional and amateur) ◊ Supported by Web portal @ AAS ◊ Kick-off event at National Air & Space Museum?

2009 Sky Events and Related Opportunities Rick Fienberg Editor in Chief, Sky & Telescope Member, AAS Program Committee for the International Year of Astronomy rfienberg@Skyand. Telescope. com

Looking Through a Telescope Astronomy is experiential — anyone can see what Galileo saw. So let’s give everyone a chance to look through a telescope!

Schedule sidewalk astronomy events on weekends closest to first-quarter Moon 2009 Jan 4 (Sun), Feb 2 (Mon), Mar 4 (Wed), Apr 2 (Thu), May 1 (Fri), May 31 (Sun) - “blue Moon” Jun 29 (Mon), Jul 28 (Tue), Aug 27 (Thu), Sep 26 (Sat), Oct 26 (Mon), Nov 24 (Tue), Dec 24 (Thu)

Some Other Sky Events in 2009 • Mercury best in evening sky: April 26, near crescent Moon • Venus best in evening sky: mid-January, then sinks down • Mars opposition: Jan. 29, 2010 @ 14 arcsec, not good in ’ 09 • Saturn opposition: March 8, ring-plane crossing Sept. 4 • Perseid meteors: mid-August (ruined by moonlight) • Leonid meteors: mid-November (dark sky) • Geminid meteors: mid-December (dark sky) • Partial lunar eclipse: December 31 (last night of IYA!); visible almost exclusively in the Eastern Hemisphere

Jupiter and the Galilean Satellites • Opposition Friday-Saturday, August 14 -15 • Coincides with end of IAU GA in Rio de Janiero • Jupiter and Neptune barely 3 degrees apart Bonus! Jupiter and Neptune fit together in a lowpower eyepiece field 3 times! • late May (morning sky) • early July (late evening/early morning sky) • late December (evening sky)

Longest Total Solar Eclipse of the 21 st Century

“First Looks” and “Telescope Amnesty” Each IAU national node could set up a website to collect people’s comments on their IYA telescopic observations, especially reactions to “first looks” • Set national targets (U. S. could aim for 10 million) • Fly comments on a space-astronomy mission? ! At all IYA events where amateurs set up telescopes, the public could be invited to bring their little-used scopes to get advice on repairs, improvements, and/or replacements.

Dark Skies Are a Universal Resource Build on existing efforts, e. g. , • International Dark-Sky Association • U. S. National Park Service GLOBE at Night draws attention to light pollution without getting into difficult political issues of safety and security raised by “lights out” events. GLOBE at Night 2009: “Great Backyard Star Count” • Count naked-eye stars in Orion • One week observing window in March 2009 • Report data to central clearinghouse

Arts, Entertainment & Storytelling Two IYA 2009 TV productions already in the works! 400 Years of the Telescope: A Journey of Science, Technology, and Thought • Produced by Kris Koenig • Written by Don Goldsmith and David H. Levy • Companion planetarium show in development The Quest to See Infinity: The 400 th Anniversary of the Telescope • Produced by Richard Hudson and David Axelrod • Senior advisor: science historian Albert van Helden

Research Experiences for Students, Teachers, and Citizen-Scientists Next eclipse begins mid-2009! (First in the Digital Age. )

Telescope Building & Optics Challenges “A Telescope in Every Pot” Project STAR telescope kit: 16 x refractor, $5 per scope! (Price could be drastically reduced with volume discount. )

Sharing the Universe Through New Technology

All I Want for IYA 2009 Is…