Space Science 2010: Building on Strong Foundations
The legacy of IYA 2009 – The Universe: Yours to Discover!
Following our participation in the International Year of Astronomy, 2010 has been a busy year for Aiglon’s Space Science Department. Students, staff, parents and friends have been able to get involved in a wide range of activities, both within and outside the School.
Our School star parties have continued to draw students of all ages. We enjoyed some excellent skies in winter and spring, when Saturn was prominent. We were not so fortunate for our first sponsored charity Messier Marathon last March, but we still managed to ‘bag’ about 30 Messier objects before the clouds rolled in! The funds raised went to development projects in the Sahel.
This term, the focus has been mighty Jupiter and the elaborate dance of its Galilean satellites, as well as the autumn galaxies. The L6th enjoyed a spectacular dark sky at Solalex for their IB expedition in early September. They were able to discover the summer Milky Way through our 30cm Dobsonian reflector. Unfortunately, our recent Erasmus Society’s evening of observation had to be cancelled, due to the precocious winter conditions, but members enjoyed an evening of talks on stellar evolution given by Mr. Turner and Mr. Starr in the relative comfort of the Physics Lab!
Our outreach partnership with Villars Tourisme has gone from strength to strength. Regular star parties have been held, especially during the tourist peak periods, when many locals and visitors have joined us to discover the night sky. We joined forces in June with French Astronomy educator, Erwan le Berre, for the 3rd International Salon de la Randonnée in Villars, where we were able to enjoy a tour of the universe in his portable planetarium and to experience breathtaking views of the M13 globular cluster through a 60cm reflector at our public star party.
Our public education programme now continues into the New Year, when we shall be offering monthly star parties, and putting on a new exhibition through the Avenue centrale in Villars. On the subject of ‘The History of Space Exploration’, this new series of 18 A0-size aluminium boards is currently being designed by our Outreach option group, and will take the public on a voyage from the dawn of the rocket age to visions of future missions and colonies on the Moon and Mars!
Special thanks go to the staff, students and parents who put in so much time and hard work to help make our activities successful and rewarding.
GCSE Astronomy in the curriculum
As well as being able to study for the GCSE exam during their free time, students may now take Astronomy and Space Science within our mainstream curriculum.
The 3rd Form study one hour of Space Science per week for a term, as part of their carousel of Science subjects. In this short course they study our Solar System, the Moon and the history of their exploration. Early in the year, we were able to enjoy and learn from an extensive project on the Apollo lunar programme, designed by last year’s 3rd Form students, which was exhibited in the School dining room. Next term, an informative display on the Solar System, designed by 3A, will be on show for all to enjoy and learn from.
Following our excellent GCSE results of last summer, 4th to 5th Form students may now choose Astronomy as one of their main timetabled GCSE options. We have a very enthusiastic group embarking on this exciting new Edexcel course, and they have already joined us at a number of our star parties to hone their practical skills. Next term they’ll be using planetary and lunar photography as a basis for some of their coursework projects.
Chris Starr
Head of Space Science
