WISE

Educator Ambassadors

With the help of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory we have recruited and trained 8 master teachers from around the United States to be WISE Educator Ambassadors. These teachers have collaborated with a scientist from the Spitzer Science Center, Varoujan Gorjian, to conduct original research using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope. These teachers have involved their students in the research projects and have presented results at meetings of the American Astronomical Society. These ambassadors conduct professional development workshops for their colleagues about the WISE mission and how to use real data in authentic classroom research projects. Here are some of the papers presented by the WISE EAs:

Spitzer 3.6 and 5.8 micron Monitoring of the Seyfert 1 NGC 4051 by Gorjian, Varoujan; Adkins, J.; Borders, K.; Kelly, S.; Martin, C.; Mendez, B.; Paradis, J.; Perreira, V.; Pittman, P.; Sepulveda, B.; NGC 4051 Monitoring Group. Published in American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #213, #420.06; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 41, p.236

Using Spitzer Data to Teach About Active Galactic Nuclei by Sepulveda, Babs; Adkins, J.; Borders, K.; Gorjian, V.; Mendez, B.; Kelly, S.; Martin, C.; Paradis, J.; Pereira, V.; Pitman, P.; NGC 4051 Monitoring Team. Published in American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #213, #463.04; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 41, p.408.

Using Spitzer Data To Obtain Dust Distribution Around The Active Galactic Nucleus NGC 4051 by Pereira, Vincent; Burrell, A.; Chavez, O.; Fawcett, E.; Elias, R.; Lugo, T.; Morillo, E.; Purpura, M.; Sorokin, S.; Gorjian, V.; Adkins, J.; Borders, K.; Kelly, S.; Martin, C.; Mendez, B.; Paradis, J.; Pittman, P.; Sepulveda, B. Published in American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #411.22

Infrared Astronomy Professional Development for K-12 Educators: WISE Telescope by Borders, Kareen; Mendez, B. Published in American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #465.10

Hands On Universe

 

Hands On Universe (HOU), from UC Berkeley Lawrence Berkeley Lab and the Lawrence Hall of Science, combines telescope networks, software, and lesson plans allowing students to conduct real research projects in the classroom. HOU has been carrying out student asteroid searches for many years. The HOU/WISE partnership has developed asteroids lesson plans. WISE will supply survey data to HOU teachers to use in student asteroid search and research programs.

A group of master HOU teachers who have co-developed the asteroid activities are now conducting workshops to involved teachers from around the country in the program. 

HOU and WISE training videos:

HOU and WISE have partnered with IASC (International Astronomical Search Collaboration).  An online training for the HOU Master Teachers on how the IASC program works and how they can get their students involved was held on January 16, 2010. 

A follow-up training session was held on March 13, 2010. This session covered in more detail the Astrometrica software used in the IASC program. 

Click here to download FAQs for Astrometrica. (pdf - 0.99MB)

Teacher Professional Development

WISE E/PO staff conducts short and long-term workshops at a variety of venues throughout the year on WISE science topics. Educators experience NASA-developed hands-on, inquiry-based lessons about infrared light. We also discuss how astronomers use infrared to learn about a variety of phenomena throughout the Cosmos. We do activities from NASA-funded curriculum guides created by the likes of the SOFIA mission, the Lawrence Hall of Science GEMS program, and WISE. These hands-on and demonstration activities are designed to complement instruction on topics such as the electromagnetic spectrum for middle and high school students. The goal is that educators will gain enough hands-on familiarity with the lessons and content to feel comfortable using them in their own classrooms effectively. We seek to enhance the teacher’s content knowledge as well as model pedagogical methods for improvement of their science teaching in the classroom. Participants regularly receive copies of the activities presented as well as other NASA educational materials: CD-ROMs, fliers, bookmarks, lithographs, etc.

Visit http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/workshops/schedule.html to see a schedule of our upcoming workshops.

Night Sky Network

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) runs the Night Sky Network (NSN), a network of hundreds of Amateur Astronomy clubs across the country interested in doing outreach activities for schools and the public. ASP develops kits for the NSN members and trains them in their use via training videos and telecons. ASP is developing a kit about asteroids. WISE E/PO is contributing to the development and training for the kit.

Asteroids Traveling Exhibit

WISE E/PO is contributing to the development and training for a new traveling exhibit and accompanying educational website, Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors – GREAT BALLS OF FIRE!, produced by the Space Science Institute.

Science Bulletins

The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City produces short news bulletins and documentaries on a variety of science topics that are available on the Web and used in science centers around the world. AMNH will produce AstroBulletins about WISE science, including a short piece about the construction and launch of WISE.

Digital Universe Atlas

The Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History curates the Digital Universe Atlas, a 3-dimensional mapping of the Universe that can be explored using free software. Hayden Planetarium will incorporate WISE data into the Digital Universe Atlas and will develop resources for informal educators on the presentation of WISE data and science in venues such as planetariums and science centers.