world space week and yuri’s night as means of communicating astronomy with the romanian public

World Space Week and Yuri’s Night as Means of Communicating

Astronomy with the Romanian Public

Communicating Astronomy with the Public

Cape Town, March 19th, 2010

Virgiliu POPRomanian Space Agency

agentia spatiala romana - romanian space agency

• "The public must understand astronomy -- its basic science as well as the process of research -- if we as a society are going to achieve our full potential. I strongly believe that astronomical institutions must make a concerted effort to communicate the fruits of their research to the public." - Sir Arthur C Clarke, 2003

• From “communicating astronomy” among scientists to “communicating astronomy to the public”. Climbing down the ivory tower – popularizing science – bringing the sky down to Earth. Public education and outreach.

• From a one-way interaction to a two-way interaction – from communicating astronomy TO the public to communicating astronomy WITH the public.

• Two gaps: Between the scientific communities and the public Between the ASTRONOMICAL and ASTRONAUTICAL scientific communities

• Bridging these gaps - communicating SPACE with the public.


• Space communicators in Romania:

The Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy (Bucharest Observatory, Timisoara Observatory, Cluj-Napoca Observatory)

The Romanian Space Agency Planetaria and “popular observatories” legally registered as

museums and funded by the local and county authorities. Amateur astronomers grouped in “astroclubs” (Bucharest

Astroclub, Meridian Zero Astroclub – Oradea, Antares Astroclub – Timisoara, SARM, etc)

Education institutions (schools, universities)

• Space communication avenues in Romania:

IAU activities – IYA2009 and its cornerstone projects – 100HA, She is an Astronomer, Galilean Nights, etc

Own education and outreach activities World Space Week, Yuri’s Night, Earth Hour, StarPeace


• Throughout the years, Romanian scientists sent into outer space, in cooperation with other countries, instruments aimed at a better understanding of the Universe.

• Established in 1991, the Romanian Space Agency (ROSA) became in 1995 an independent public institution under the authority of the Ministry of Education and Research

• Mission: Coordinate the national space research and applications programs Promote space development Be the Government representative for international space cooperation

• Romania is a European Cooperating State of the European Space Agency, ROSA’s main goal being the full integration into ESA.

• Since 2008, ROSA is an associate member of the ASTRONET consortium.• ROSA’s space education and outreach activities include, inter alia, the national

coordination of the World Space Week and Yuri’s Night.


• The World Space Week is an annual observance held from October 4 to October 10, established by the United Nations General Assembly to be an international celebration of science and technology and their contribution to the betterment of the human condition. World Space Week is coordinated by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs with the support of World Space Week Association, a non-government organization.

• The start and end dates of World Space Week recognize the launch of the first human-made Earth satellite, Sputnik 1, on October 4, 1957; and the signing of the Outer Space Treaty on October 10, 1967.

• In 2007, World Space Week was celebrated in 54 countries and in space. A total of 435 events were reported in 244 cities, with attendance of over 377,000 and media audience of over 26,000,000. Events included rocket launches, school activities, exhibits, political events, and special events at planetaria around the world.

• In 2008, Romania was the second in the world as to the number of events (79), and in 2009 it hosted even more events, in half of its counties.

• In 2009, the theme of the WSW was “Space for Education”. During WSW 2009, US President Barack Obama hosted a “Star Party” on the White House lawn. The event included 20 telescopes focused on Jupiter, the Moon and select stars; interactive dome presentations; and hands-on activities including scale models of the Solar System. The White House event for middle-school students highlighted the President's commitment to science, engineering and math education as the foundation of the US global technological and economic leadership.


• The Romanian Space Agency has coordinated the celebration of the World Space Week in Romania each year since 2000. In 2008, the Romanian participants have enthusiastically embarked on the quest of “Exploring the Universe” with their imagination, the theme of that year’s WSW. The age range of the participants has been very diverse – from kindergartners who helped bake stellar cookies in Oradea, to a pensioner who built a model airplane/rocketship in Bazna.

• In 2008, WSW events took place in many cities and villages throughout the country. In the city of Cluj-Napoca, host of several space-related events, high school students “occupied” a street and transformed it into a “Solar System Boulevard”. The imagination of the participants was boundless, events ranging from space-themed chalk drawings on the streets of Romanian villages, to Space Carnivals, to water-rocket launches and to movie projections. It is most remarkable that most of the event organizers were women, and this is entirely due to their sheer enthusiasm.

• Many events consisted of sidewalk astronomy events, the amateur astronomical community making full use of this important opportunity for communicating astronomy with the public.


Cluj-Napoca

Bucuresti


Timisoara

Orastie


Barlad

Cluj-Napoca


Bucharest

Marginea


Cluj-Napoca

Bacau


• Yuri's Night is an international celebration held on April 12 every year to commemorate two separate space exploration milestones. The first milestone was the launch of the first human into space, Yuri Gagarin on April 12, 1961. The second milestone was the launch of the first Space Shuttle, STS-1, on April 12, 1981.

• The goal of Yuri's Night is to increase public interest in space exploration and to inspire a new generation of explorers. Driven by space-inspired artistic expression and culminating in a worldwide network of annual celebrations and educational events, Yuri's Night creates a global community of young people committed to shaping the future of space exploration while developing responsible leaders and innovators with a global perspective. These global events are a showcase for elements of culture that embrace space including music, dance, fashion, and art.

• In 2009, Romania was also second in the world as to the number of YN events.• Like in the case of World Space Week celebrations in Romania, many events

consisted of sidewalk astronomy events, the amateur astronomical community making full use of this important opportunity for communicating astronomy with the public.


Timisoara


Sibiu


Cluj-Napoca

Barlad


Constanta

Arad


Arad

Oradea


Thank you!

world space week and yuri’s night as means of communicating astronomy with the romanian public

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