Category Archives: Education

Solar Art Exhibition in Hawaii

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                Exhibition in Hawaii Some time ago a painting of mine won a prize in the My Sun My Star Contest. This was a solar art competition involving photographs, drawings and paintings inspired by the sun. The contest was run by The National Solar Observatory in Boulder Colorado. One of the aspects of the prize is that my painting X-Ray Sun (above) will go on exhibition . On Friday September 20th if you are in Hawaii (how exotic) one of my paintings and in addition one of my solar drawings will be on show. Since the prize came my way I was asked if another work of mine could be included in their exhibitions. NSO requested one of my solar drawings. That sketch it is called East Limb Proms. The venue is The University of Hawaii – Institute for Astronomy, it is on the island of Maui. The event is an open day … Continue reading →

Plateau Sunrise

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This entry is part 7 of 7 in the series Lunarcy

Sunrise on the Aristarchus Plateau is always a thrilling sight whether in your first 60mm telescope or a 400mm cannon! The eye-popping crater Aristarchus (41km diameter) in the center of this image, is the brightest crater on the moon and at 175 million years old, a Jurassic Crater, it’s one of the younger ones. Some dinosaur had a front seat to a spectacular impact show! Notice the nice terracing on the interior wall of this crater. Most of the Plateau is in shadow here. Aristarchus itself is in the southeast corner. You can see the east side of the Plateau going north from Aristarchus. Above and to the right of Aristarchus is the arc of the partially flooded Prinz (49km) and the beautiful Rimae Prinz just above. Immediately above the north rim of Prinz is the odd crater Vera. It is the south end of one of the rimae that you can see running north a little further to the … Continue reading →

Hexagons in Space JWST

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Hexagons As far as I know hexagons in space are not common.  The only natural hexagonal shape I know of out there is the extraordinary storm cloud on the north pole of Saturn. However here on Earth, this shape is everywhere,  bees use hexagons in building their hives.  Hexagons hide in plain sight within our bodies, our skin and our DNA. The humble pencil is hexagonal to maximise its packing potential and help it not roll of your desk. The six-sided shape fits together perfectly with no gaps. Apparently, the geometry of  a hexagon uses the least amount of material to hold the most weight.  Hexagons can, therefore,  take a lot of force even if they are made from light material. The James Webb Space Telescope mirrors are made of Beryllium alloys.  This is a very lightweight  metal consisting of closely packed hexagonal structures within itself.  The skeleton behind each of the eighteen mirrors is also created with hexagonal shapes … Continue reading →

Light Thinking

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It’s raining as I write, water pours down the window like syrup in a jar. Montbretia in the garden seem to generate self-made light. Each flower punctuates the greyness with orange flames on stems within the hedgerow. It is often grey days that send me light thinking and remind me of how frequently I dwell on it. Recently I met Br Guy Colsolmagno for breakfast in Dublin. A sunny morning with the promise of more light to fill the day. We had a fun catch up chat within which were several moments of encouragement  sprinkled  towards my work. We then headed to the National Gallery of Ireland to see an impressionist exhibition. Sorolla Exhibition Sorolla was a Spanish master of light, the exhibition held fifty works spread over four large rooms in the gallery. All of Sorolla’s work in which the subjects were sails, sailing or water  mesmerised  me. I enjoyed his brush strokes, bold one stroke renderings of shirt … Continue reading →

What happens at a Vatican Observatory Summer School?

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It’s back to school time in the northern hemisphere, and at the Vatican Observatory we’re both celebrating our summer schools past and letting the world know about our Summer School, Future! First, some information about the upcoming summer school. It’s called the VOSS (for Vatican Observatory Summer School.) It runs for four weeks. It is open to students from around the world who are in the last years of their undergraduate or opening years of graduate studies in astronomy or astrophysics; it is held at our headquarters in Castel Gandolfo; it features a world class teaching staff (more about them, below); and it’s free. (If you can afford it, we ask you to pay some part of the cost of travel and housing; if you can’t, we cover it.) There are two restrictions on who gets to attend. First, we only want students who intend to continue in a career in astronomy. This is not for anyone who already has … Continue reading →

Raising Awareness One Piece of Gum at a Time

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RAISING AWARENESS ONE PIECE OF GUM AT A TIME Introduction Whether it’s public outreach, informal education, or science-for-non-science-majors, not all learners are necessarily on the same page as their presenters or even others in the audience. Workshop members, students, and the general public have different science backgrounds, expectations, and  interest levels, just to name a few variables presenters need to take into account. The use of ice breaker activities, brainstorming, and cooperative projects not only raises awareness of astronomy-related vocabulary and concepts to be studied, but — especially in a workshop setting — can serve as an introduction of group members to each other and to staff, and can develop a sense of camaraderie. Below are three suggested group  activities featuring uses of astronomy terms in music, local businesses and amenities, and advertising. These activities can, we hope, both entertain and pique the interest of the learners as they begin to think about astronomy.   Astronomy in Song The number … Continue reading →

50th Anniversary Moon Landing

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  On July 19th it was my pleasure to run two Apollo 11drawing workshops for children in Co Sligo Ireland. This was the eve of the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo moon landing. Seeing the moon landing live on TV 50 years ago was a big deal to me. It influenced my life in many ways, it still does. Therefore being so close to July 20th, I included my workshops as part of the global celebration of Apollo 11 in the IAU ( International Astronomical Union) events list. You can see mine and  the events from all over the world here. Its interesting how the Apollo moon landing absolutly pulled the entire planet together as one back in 1969. A few hours of focused global awe for the achievements of three men on our behalf. We need more of that unity, we need it so much. Ocean FM based in Co Sligo interviewed me about the Apoll 11 moon landing … Continue reading →

Lunar Eavesdropping: Two Men, a Radio, and Apollo 11 (re-run)

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In honor of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, I am today “re-running” this slightly edited combination of two posts that originally ran last summer. Today we celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.*  I wish those celebrations included more recognition of a unique accomplishment that is part of the Apollo 11 story but that is widely unknown: the work of Larry Baysinger—a man from my home town of Louisville, Kentucky—who independently detected signals from the Apollo 11 astronauts as they walked on the lunar surface.  Baysinger’s accomplishments were recorded and promptly published in the Louisville Courier-Journal, by another Louisvillian by the name of Glenn Rutherford, who later went on to be editor of the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Louisville, The Record. Rutherford was a 23-year-old reporter for the Courier-Journal, and his article about Baysinger was published under the headline “Lunar Eavesdropping:  Louisvillians hear moon walk talk on homemade equipment”.  Baysinger was a … Continue reading →

Apollo Moon Masterpiece

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Way back in time when I was just 11 years old I bought myself a copy of National Geographic Magazine. The February 1969 issue came with a large comprehensive moon map. The map is jam-packed with moon information, including the proposed sites for the Apollo Missions. This Apollo Moon masterpiece shown above is a true thing of beauty. This treasure has been on my wall for decades, an inspiration every time I look at it. The original artwork for the near and far side of the moon was hand-painted by cartographic artist Tibor Toth.   There were no computers in graphic art at the time. The map was designed by Dave Cook who also did most of the writing for the gorgeous snippets of lunar information included in every nook and cranny. Others credited with the work on the map are  Richard Furno, Dave Moore, and Jay Igno. Back then copying and pasting was just exactly that, cutting out text … Continue reading →

Keep up with the Apollo 11 – 50th Anniversary

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    There is an abundance of Apollo 11 50th Aniversary  activities flooding the internet at the moment. Here below are a few that I find interesting and perhaps you have not found them yet. Hopefully, you can access most of them no matter what country you are in  while reading this write up. Share your Apollo 11 Story with NASA a call out to the world One that resonated with me is the NASA call out for oral recordings of peoples personal memories of the moon landing in 1969. This call runs up to December 31st 2019. It is easy to do and there is a list of questions to address in your recording that helps to structure your audio. The questions help to build a picture of the impact of the first moon landing on peoples lives. A few weeks ago I recorded my four minutes worth and sent it in. It felt good to do it, some … Continue reading →

A Fox, a Weaver, and a Woman Named Rona Walk onto the Moon…

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Storytelling represents a key element in the creation and propagation of culture…transmitting survival-relevant information while avoiding the costs involved in the first-hand acquisition of that information….The specific adaptive value of storytelling lies in making sense of non-routine, uncertain, or novel situations…. Or to put it another way, Everybody loves stories! Brother Guy Celestial Storytelling Ancient people observed the sky for a variety of reasons. Some were exceptional observers, recorders, and predictors of astronomical events. While they did not have all the answers, they were observing and asking questions, giving names to what they saw, and connecting what they observed to their daily lives. Certain constellations were used as seasonal markers, informing people when storytelling season began and ended, when it was time to plant and harvest, when it was safe to sail, and when the rainy season would begin. Stars and constellations were also used to find direction, both on land and at sea. Stories were used to remind people … Continue reading →

Symposium to Honor the Legacy of Astrophysicist Dr. Vera Rubin

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A symposium in honor of Dr. Vera Rubin is being held at Georgetown University, June 24-26, 2019. Dr. Rubin (1928-2016) was one of the most important astrophysicists of the 20th and 21st centuries. She received her Ph.D. from Georgetown University in 1954, and pioneered the study of galaxy rotation rates that provided definitive evidence for the existence of Dark Matter. Dr. Rubin was also a fierce and effective advocate for women in science. This symposium honors her legacy by bringing together astrophysicists whose research was made possible by Dr. Rubin’s discoveries; they will discuss the latest developments in the field, and the connections with Dr. Rubin’s discoveries. Symposium organizers expect some sessions will be particularly interesting to those involved in educating the next generation of scientists and scientifically engaged citizens. Some of the lectures/discussions include: Keynote lecture by Dr. Abigail Fraeman from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory – she will discuss the exploration that she leads of the Vera Rubin … Continue reading →