Educational testing of an auditory display regarding seasonal variation of martian polar ice caps

Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD), Boston, MA, July 7-9, 2003.During Fall 2002, planetary scientists and astronomy education researchers from the University of Arizona and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory collaborated with composer Marty Quinn of Design Rhythmics Sonification Research Lab in New Hampshire to create both a visual and auditory display of recent gamma ray data from Mars. This product will be used both to highlight the value of data from the current Mars 2001 Odyssey mission and to serve as a testbed for research into the use and effectiveness of auditory displays in science education. This paper provides background on the Mars data presented, an overview of the animation/sonification product, preliminary results from educational testing of the product, and future research plans. The authors hope to present both the sonification and preliminary results of educational research at the ICAD conference this summer

Mari Idei în Astronomie

Astronomia pentru toți Acesta este motto-ul Biroului pentru Astronomie al Uniunii Internaționale Astronomice (IAU). Dacă ”Toți” este un termen foarte vast pentru a defini societatea și comunitățile ei, Astronomia”, ca baza de cunoștințe este, de asemenea, la fel de vast. Acest proiect ”Mari Idei în Astronomie”, analizează problema: ”Ce ar trebui să cunoască locuitorii planetei Pământ despre astronomie?”. ”Mari Idei în Astronomie” prezintă unsprezece idei principale și le extinde sub forma unor idei secundare și informații suplimentare. Acest document este un ghid conceput pentru educatori și astronomi, pentru a-i ajuta să decidă ce subiecte ar trebui să abordeze în activitățile de predare, sesiunile de formare, activitățile de informare sau dezvoltare a resurselor. Totuși, pentru că acesta trebuie să fie un document dinamic, salutăm comentariile și remarcile venite din partea comunității astronomice, comunității pentru educație astronomică și comunității pentru educație științifică. În urma mai multor discuții, întâlniri, ateliere, prezentări, teleconferințe si interacțiuni - text (mesaje scrise) în acest document, propunem un set de ”Mari Idei în Astronomie”, o Definiție Propusă a Alfabetizării Astronomice. Acest document stabilește „Marile Idei” și conceptele suport despre astronomie, pe care toți cetățenii planetei noastre ar trebui să le cunoască

The 2.5 m Telescope of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

We describe the design, construction, and performance of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Telescope located at Apache Point Observatory. The telescope is a modified two-corrector Ritchey-Chretien design which has a 2.5-m, f/2.25 primary, a 1.08-m secondary, a Gascoigne astigmatism corrector, and one of a pair of interchangeable highly aspheric correctors near the focal focal plane, one for imaging and the other for spectroscopy. The final focal ratio is f/5. The telescope is instrumented by a wide-area, multiband CCD camera and a pair of fiber-fed double spectrographs. Novel features of the telescope include: (1) A 3 degree diameter (0.65 m) focal plane that has excellent image quality and small geometrical distortions over a wide wavelength range (3000 to 10,600 Angstroms) in the imaging mode, and good image quality combined with very small lateral and longitudinal color errors in the spectroscopic mode. The unusual requirement of very low distortion is set by the demands of time-delay-and-integrate (TDI) imaging; (2) Very high precision motion to support open loop TDI observations; and (3) A unique wind baffle/enclosure construction to maximize image quality and minimize construction costs. The telescope had first light in May 1998 and began regular survey operations in 2000.Comment: 87 pages, 27 figures. AJ (in press, April 2006

The relationship of galaxy morphology to nuclear star formation in noninteracting spiral galaxies.

Three specific questions concerning the relationship between galaxian morphology and infrared properties were addressed for non-interacting galaxies: (1) Why are high infrared luminosity (L > 10¹⁰ L(⊙)) Sa galaxies scarce compared to Sb and Sc galaxies; (2) Is there a relationship between the bulge to total luminosity and the infrared properties of early type spirals; and (3) Are bars essential to nuclear star formation processes in non-interacting galaxies? These questions were answered using IRAS data, CO (1-0) measurements, 2 μm, 10 μm, and visible CCD observations. Only 4% of Sa's in the Revised Shapley-Ames Catalog (RSAC) with B(Γ) 10¹⁰ L(⊙), 1/6 of the ratio for Sb's and Sc's. Less than three Sa's of 166 in the RSAC have nuclear starbursts not associated with interactions or active nuclei. A comparison of neutral hydrogen fluxes and CO fluxes with infrared fluxes implies that molecular cloud formation is inhibited in Sa's, leading to the lack of infrared activity. An investigation of the role of bulges in suppressing star formation in Sa through Sb spirals relied on the photometric observations of Kent, Kodaira, and Cornell and on IRAS infrared observations. The bulge to total luminosity is uncorrelated with the ratio of infrared to blue flux, 60 μm/100 μm fluxes, or infrared luminosity. These results indicate that disk star formation is relatively unaffected by bulge size. The hypothesis that high far-infrared luminosities in non-interacting galaxies are dependent on material fed into their nuclei by bars was tested by near infrared imaging of a sample of 15 optically unbarred galaxies in a search for hidden bars. These galaxies were non-interacting, non-Seyfert galaxies with far infrared luminosities > 10¹⁰ L(⊙) and hot colors between 60 and 100 μm (S₆₀/S₁₀₀ > 0.5, indicative of nuclear starbursts). At least 8 of these galaxies do not appear to have bars. Strong bars therefore are not an absolute requirement for high infrared luminosity

LEDs and Astronomy

Using a Czerny-Turner spectrometer, 45 different types of outdoor lights were categorized. These spectra were used to determine how useful the light is to human eyes and how dark skies friendly these lights are. Dark skies friendly lighting means that little to no light shines above a right angle to the light, and should emit as little as possible below 500nm (green) wavelengths. The short wavelengths present a problem to astronomers in the form of Rayleigh scattering. The following criterion were used in selecting the best source for urban and rural lighting: color rendition measured by color rendering index (CRI), percentage of light scattered because it is emitted under 500 nm, and efficiency (lumens/watt). Analysis determined that the best option currently available is to add a 495-500 nm filter to existing and future white LEDs in cities

Outcomes from the IYL2015 Quality Lighting Teaching Kit Program: Reaching for the Stars

Poor quality lighting not only impedes astronomy research and our right to see a starry night sky, but creates safety issues, affects human circadian sensitivities, disrupts ecosystems, and wastes billions of dollars/year in energy consumption. It also leads to excess carbon emissions. How do you change the mindset of society that is used to turning night into day? You educate the next generation on quality lighting. As an outcome of the International Year of Light 2015, the U.S. National Optical Astronomy Observatory’s Education and Public Outreach group has produced a Quality Lighting Teaching (QLT) Kit. The kits are designed around problem-based learning scenarios. The kit’s six activities allow students to address real lighting problems that relate to wildlife, sky glow, aging eyes, energy consumption, safety, and light trespass. The activities are optimized for 11-14 year olds, but can be expanded to younger and older. All materials are in English and Spanish. Most of the activities can be done within in a few minutes during class or afterschool in the form of stations or as stand-alones. Everything one needs for the six activities is included. Tutorial videos on how to do the activities can be found at www.noao.edu/education/qltkit.php. Ninety-two kits have been distributed to 32 countries with the help of SPIE–The International Society for Optical Engineering, CIE–International Commission on Illuminations, OSA–The Optical Society, IDA–the International Dark Sky Association, and the IAU OAD–Office of Astronomy Development. Highlights from the initial program evaluation will be discussed

The Quality Lighting Teaching Kit: Inspiring our Society to be Part of the Solution to Light Pollution

As an outcome of the International Year of Light 2015, the U.S. National Optical Astronomy Observatory’s Education and Public Outreach group has produced a Quality Lighting Teaching (QLT) Kit, The kits are designed around problem-based learning scenarios. The kit’s six activities allow students to address real lighting problems that relate to wildlife, sky glow, aging eyes, energy consumption, safety, and light trespass. The activities are optimized for 11-14 year olds but can be expanded to younger and older. Most of the activities can be done within in a few minutes during class or afterschool and as stations or as stand-alones. Everything you need for the six activities is included in the kit. Tutorial videos on how to do the activities can be found at www.noao.edu/education/qltkit.php. 90 out of 100 kits have been distributed to SPIE, OSA, CIE, IDA and the IAU in 32 countries