Day by day, and year by year, we strive to obtain and generate transformational science. But none of this is worthwhile if it is not shared with everyone.
To commemorate Astronomy Day, celebrated every 21 March, we open our doors of SCO and ESO, so that young people and adults can learn about who we are and what we do.
“The experience has been super fun because it was my turn to observe, and people are very interested because they can see in real time what we are doing,” said Marilyn Cruces, our ALMA Fellow, who welcomed people in the Control Room. “It’s amazing that so many people are interested and have questions. In fact, a lot of them are really good and make you think, ‘Sure, why am I doing this?'”, she added.
600 people participated in the Open House. And for those who didn’t manage to register, this year we had special coverage from two public media outlets, such as Cooperativa Ciencia radio and the children’s channel NTV, increasing our reach to new audiences.
The morning started with the arrival of 160 students, teachers and parents from different schools in Santiago (San Joaquín, La Pintana, Cerro Navia, Colina and Vitacura), who were able to visit our Control Room and see a live connection with Paranal, as well as participate in different workshops and interactive exhibitions.
AUI also invited a group of students from the deaf institute of the Dr. Jorge Otte School.
“I thought the activity was very good because we could also learn how telescopes work, and we were also able to go through the silk-screen printing workshop. I brought my T-shirt and it turned out very nice”, said Lucas Ballester, 5th grade student and member of the Barrancas de Cerro Navia Astronomy Club.
“The day was very good, very complete and well organised. What I liked the most was how the comets are formed, it was entertaining because it was more interactive and serves to get people involved and inspire them on the subject”, said Nicolás Gómez, a 4th grade student at the Amanda Labarca school in Vitacura.
“I think it’s all been spectacular, the kids are very happy. The idea is that they can get to know what ALMA is and what these tremendous telescopes mean here in Chile, and the projections they have to work with. I think it’s a dream job,” said Guillermo Retamal, in charge of the Cerro Navia Science Office.
The same morning activities were repeated for the general public during the afternoon, with an Astro-concert by the Fundación de Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles (FOJI), interspersed with short astronomical talks.
“I didn’t know they were celebrating Astronomy Day, so it’s a novelty, and very good because ALMA is super important for astronomy and so we can give this opportunity to the little ones,” say Christian and Nicole, who came to ALMA for the first time.
“It’s incredible. The demand tells you that people really want to be here. We are grateful that they open their doors and that they allow us as citizens to get to know them a little better,” said Catalina, together with her son Theo.
It was a day full of energy, thanks to the support of each of the ALMA, ESO and AUI volunteers who guided people through their visits.
“It’s my first time volunteering, and I will definitely be volunteering for as many years to come. I think it’s a good opportunity for the people and also for the organisation for us to get closer to the people,” says Camila Martínez, our Software Engineer, who supported the fluorescent astronomy painting activity. “Everyone is completely interested, so it’s nice to get that love from people for what we do here on a daily basis,” she concluded.
(In the following picture, Camila is on the left)
CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO SEE A PHOTO GALLERY OF OUR OPEN HOUSE 2024
IF YOU ENJOYED THIS NEWSLETTER, GIVE IT A “LIKE” AND COMMENT!
Linda iniciativa!!!!!!