Function: To develop and foster contact and communication between the IPS and other professional and educational organizations, as well as to distribute database resources for use in planetariums around the world.
This committee works on making ongoing contact with such organizations as the International Astronomical Union, the American Astronomical Society, the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, and the Space Telescope Institute. The committee facilitates information between the IPS membership and international space agencies such as NASA, ESA, CNES and JSA.
Committee Members
Jon Elvert, Chair <jelvert@lasm.org>
Irene W. Pennington Planetarium
Louisiana Art & Science Museum
100 South River Road
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802 USA
(1) 225 344 5272 x141
Shoichi Itoh
Research Expert and Project Leader
Public Relations Center
National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
National Institute of Natural Sciences
2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka,
Tokyo, 181-8588 JAPAN
+81-(0)422-34-3802
+81-(0)422-34-3810 fax shoichi.itoh@nao.ac.jp
The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is supported by eleven cornerstone projects. These are global programmes of activities centred on a specific theme and represent the means to achieve the IYA 2009’s main goals; whether it is the support and promotion of women in astronomy, the preservation of dark-sky sites around the world or educating and explaining the workings of the Universe to millions, the eleven cornerstones will be the key facets of the success of the IYA 2009. See summary of IYA cornerstones from the Cornerstone Project task group.
IYA Update: June 2008:
The International Year of Astronomy in 2009 (IYA 2009) is poised to become the greatest-ever global celebration of astronomy and its many contributions to society and culture. The year-long event was conceived to honor the 400th anniversary of the first use of an astronomical telescope by Galileo Galilei in 1609. The IYA is sponsored by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and endorsed by UNESCO and the United Nations. The IYA aims to stimulate worldwide interest in astronomy and science, especially among young people. The major cornerstone projects for the IYA include:
The Galileoscope: An affordable educational telescope kit to be distributed through local planetariums and science centers. You are encouraged to now team up with potential partners in this initiative, such as science centers, planetariums, amateur-astronomy clubs, and other outlets. At this stage this project needs to know, as soon as possible, how many Galileoscopes you estimate that you will need. This will give us a more clear idea of the price and delivery dates. For that purpose please return the pre-order form to iya2009@eso.org before 30 June 2008. The cost for each telescope is US$10.
Please note:
This is a pre-order only, not a final binding commercial contract on either side.
There is the option to have one or more sponsor logos placed on the telescope next to the IYA2009 and the Galileoscope logos, at an additional cost to be determined.
We are investigating a bulk order for a stable but affordable tripod and a safe aperture-end solar filter. Please indicate if you think you might be interested in these optional extras for your Galileoscopes.
We encourage the IYA2009 Single Points of Contact to coordinate the distribution within the individual countries, but direct individual orders from IYA2009 partners (Organisational Nodes, societies, organisations, etc.), will be accepted too. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact:
Stephen M. Pompea
US/IYA2009 Project Director, US/IYA2009 Telescope Kits Chair spompea@noao.edu
Dark Skies Awareness: Promoting an appreciation for the value of dark skies in energy conservation and our quality of life through shared observations, art, and photography.
From Earth to the Universe: 100 of the most beautiful astronomy images with captions, prepared for local production and display at planetariums, museums, and at local public venues.
In addition, there will both a German and a United States planetarium show reflecting the 400th year of Galileo’s telescope. The U.S. show will be distributed for a small fee through the IPS. Both shows will be available for distribution in early 2009.
2008 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference
The Lunar and Planetary Institute invites all interested planetarians to join us for the 2008 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. This annual conference is attended by approximately 1400 planetary scientists from around the world, and takes place in Houston (League City), Texas, March 10-14 2008. It is hosted by the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Directorate of NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Planetarians are invited to register to attend several free educator workshops being offered by planetary science mission education leads, as well as the free E/PO Forum: Reaching the Moon.
As part of the Outreach Committee's efforts to assist planetariums in developing countries, David Weinrich reports: "We have been talking about ways of helping astronomy educators in developing countries for the past two years. Now we are ready for a pilot project that we hope will lead to future astronomical outreach to many developing countries." As part of the pilot project, a refurbished MediaGlobe digital projector was donated by the Louisiana Art & Science Museum to the Ghana Science Center. to the Ghana Science Center in Africa. The science center will provide funding for shipping it from Orlando, Florida to Ghana. They will also provide a dome for the projector, identify local science teachers or astronomy enthusiasts who can be trained to operate the system and give shows and provide funding for the training.
Dave explains, "We felt that it is especially important that there be active involvement of personnel and resources from Ghana. They have to be involved in the planning, the implementation and the future operation of the planetarium."
"We believe that it is especially important that local personnel be trained to run the planetarium and that there is adequate documentation of the project for media presentations and for reports to the International Planetarium Society."
Congratulations to David and Joanne for getting this project off the ground.
Committee Members 
Thomas Kraupe <