Astronomy Education links

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific was founded in 1889 by a group of Northern California professional and amateur astronomers after joining together to view a rare total solar eclipse. The ASP's earliest purpose was to disseminate astronomical information - a mission which has flourished with astronomers' inexhaustible exploration of the universe. The ASP has become the largest general astronomy society in the world, with members from over 70 nations. The ASP Board of Directors is comprised of members of the astronomy, educational, and amateur communities.

These projects have been designed with gifted and talented students in mind . However, each project title includes a number of alternative activities at a range of different levels of sophistication and difficulty. It is intended that this will make them suitable for mainstream students of different ages and abilities, as well as those officially designated 'gifted and talented'.

The projects are all of an investigative nature, and make use of real scientific data and images, especially those from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), and robotic telescopes such as the Faulkes Telescopes. They aim to involve students in doing realistic and genuine science at a level which is appropriate for them. The projects are not prescriptive, but offer the student genuine choices as to what to investigate and how to do so (while at the same time still providing all necessary guidance and background scientific information). They aim to get students thinking scienfically for themselves, and experiencing the thrill of genuine scientific discovery.

The Bradford Robotic Telescope programme is dedicated to education for all. Our aim is to inspire students, parents, astronomers and members of the public with the wonder of the universe and encourage them to study science. You are welcome to use the site. We are a not-for-profit initiative of the University of Bradford. The Bradford Robotic Telescope is not a centrally funded initiative and in order to keep running we must win subscriptions from schools.

COST: From £130-340 for Secondary and Primary (includes training course)

"Ever wanted X-ray specs or super-human vision? Chromoscope lets you explore our Galaxy (the Milky Way) and the distant Universe in a range of wavelengths from X-rays to the longest radio waves.

Chromoscope is an accessible, easy tool that anyone can use to explore and understand the sky at multiple wavelengths.

Chromoscope has been created using public-domain datasets from a number of all-sky astronomy projects. It lets you easily move around the sky and fade between wavelengths using a simple user-interface to illustrate the similarities and differences between what is visible at each wavelength.

There are currently seven included: gamma ray (Fermi), X-ray (ROSAT), H-alpha (WHAM), optical (DSS), infrared (IRAS), microwave (WMAP) and radio (Haslam). You can click on the credit information, shown at the bottom-right of the Chromoscope screen, to learn more about each survey.

This site offers an simple, interactive way to view the Universe, allowing users to toggle between sky views at a range of different wavelengths.

Down to Earth (D2E) is all about the "3D's" - death, destruction and dinosaurs. It contains a range of science and maths resources based around the topic of meteorites, impacts and cratering, inckluding the "Impact Calculator". This uses research software developed by Jay Melosh's group in Arizona, tied to a nice graphic interface and Google Maps - you can build an impactor (iron, rock or ice), set it's parameters (velocity, angle of impact, target rock type etc.) and then slam it into any point on the Earth's surface. The website works out all the physics and generates the output, which you can view as numbers (for plotting etc.) or you can plot the crater size on Google Maps, or view it in cross-section and check how deep it is in comparison to various landmarks (Eiffel Tower, Empire State Building etc.).

The D2E site also contains updated versions of resources previously produced for Classroom Space and Deep Impact.

Mostly suitable for ages 11-16, but the Impact Calculator could be used at all levels.

The European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO) for the UK is based at the National Science Learning Centre in York. It's goals are:

A unique project offering live access to two 2-metre class professional telescopes, located in Hawaii (FT North) and Australia (FT South). See also the FT's parent organisation, Las Cumbres Observatory. 

COST: FREE for Secondary and Primary schools; FREE teacher training and resources

Each module is also designed to support elements in the English National Curriculum at KS4 and the astronomy and cosmology elements of the A-level Physics syllabus. We aim to offer material for students studying by distance learning as well as in conventional classes.

The text is supported by images from telescopes and space probes, along with detailed illustrations of different concepts. Each module also has example questions on the material presented.

 A high quality interactive learning resource that engages the learner whilst providing excellent support to the teacher. Based on Edexcel's specification, this is an increasingly popular course in schools and colleges.

Over 500 webpages & images

• Over 100 multimedia animations & videos
• Interactive quizzes, calculators & convertors
• Practical activities.
• Relevant external links to other sites
• Easy to use and accessible to all learning (W3 compatible XHTML)
• Forum for students & teachers to discuss issues
• Page Narration for Moon section

This site was set up to support the European Science Week 2001 event 'Life in the Universe' and to explain the intense scientific effort in the UK that is being put into the search for life beyond the Earth.

There was a competition for young people between 14-19 years of age. The winners went to CERN in Geneva for a 'Life in the Universe' Conference. The entries of the UK Winners and Runners Up can be viewed from the Competition Page. 

There are many links, in particular to the substantial UK contribution to the search.

The NSO offers access to data, software and educational materials from the 2-metre Liverpool Telescope on La Palma.

COST: FREE for Secondary and Primary schools; FREE teacher training and resources

Over the past forty years scientists have discovered that asteroids and comets have collided with the Earth throughout its 4.5 billion year history. The impact of these Near Earth Objects with our planet can be catastrophic and still represents a natural hazard today.

"The PhysLink.com is a comprehensive physics and astronomy online education, research and reference web site.

In addition to providing high-quality content, PhysLink.com is a meeting place for professionals, students and other curious minds."

Links to a wide range of resources, mostly US-based but with some from other countries, covering many topics and a wide age distribution. Very comprehensive.

Project CLEA -- CONTEMPORARY LABORATORY EXPERIENCES IN ASTRONOMY -- develops laboratory exercises that illustrate modern astronomical techniques using digital data and color images. They are suitable for high- school and college classes at all levels, but come with defaults set for use in introductory astronomy classes for non-science majors. Each CLEA laboratory exercise includes a dedicated computer program, a student manual, and a technical guide for the instructor. The technical guides describe file formats, user-settable options, and algorithms used in the programs. The most advanced CLEA labs run under Windows on PC's, or under Windows emulation on Macintosh computers.

Excellent resources, suitable for a range of ages and abilities - a great alternative to using a real telescope!

Dr. Richard Beare is based at the Institute of Education at Warwick University, and has been working with the Faulkes Telescope Project and holds a PPARC Large Award (for producing resources for gifted and talented science education). His website contains a variety of educational resources that use FT and Sloan Digitised Sky Survey (SDSS) data to teach science and maths, mainly at upper secondary levels, and with activities suitable for G+T students.

This year, 2007, marks the 50th Anniversary of the International Geophysical Year, 1957-58. One of the memorable events during IGY was the launch of Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite. IGY heralded the modern space era.

The UK hosts a vibrant solar-terrestrial physics (STP) community with an enviably high profile in the international research arena. They are also involved in a dazzling array of space research projects, from earth orbiting satellites and ground-based experiments to far-ranging planetary probes and landers. SUN EARTH PLAN celebrates Britain's pivotal role in space science.

A website all about careers in astronomy and astrophysics. The site says:

"Astronomy has captivated bright minds for millennia. Because astronomy is a competitive and rigorous field, it's imperative to have a clear perspective on the future of research and the reality of limited research positions. If you're considering becoming a full-time stargazer, or if you want to make a career out of contemplating the cosmos, you've come to the right place.

We've compiled links to the best resources on the web for pursuing an education and career in astronomy. All of the links will direct you to resources from universities, government agencies, and respectable independent organizations."