Khagol- 134 (Oct 2024) - ENG

Public Outreach Activities National Space Day celebrations | 15 | KHAG L | No. 134 - OCTOBER 2024 review of the Marathi version of the book 'Big Ideas' and plans to print copies for distribution in the schools. The OAE Center - India team has created user guides for the books 'Big Ideas in Astronomy', 'Khagol Goshti', and 'Jantar Mantar' to assist the teachers in using the books effectively in class. The Center has distributed approximately 100 sets of Marathi books in the schools. They have received a request for three hundred books which is in the process of distribution. DistributionofResources: 3. Objective: Promote astronomy in curricula The OAE Center - India conducted a baseline survey for the status of astronomy education throughout the country over the last year and the manuscript based on the results is currently under peer review. The OAE Center - India is working on the analysis of the survey data to investigate the differences in astronomy education among different states of India. The preliminary results show there is a large variance in the understanding of a s t r o n omy c o n c e p t s a n d t h e availability of resources among the states. The Center also conducted a public astronomy survey during the Science Day activities over the past two years. The data analysis will help understand the public perception of astronomy and prepare a manuscript on the same. 4. Objective:OAENetworking The OAE Center - India assisted in the organisation of the 6th SHAW IAU workshop (A virtual international workshop held from November 12 - 15, 2024). Also, as a part of the Astronomy Educ a t i on Re s ea r ch Sc i en t i f i c Organizing Committee, the OAE Center - India team reviewed the submitted abstracts and helped to create the program. The Center also volunteered for theJWSTsession of theworkshop. The redesigned website of the IUCAA Public Outreach Programmes was made live in August 2024. It can be accessed via the URL - https://scipop.iucaa.in/ IUCAA conducted and collaborated on various outreach events across the country to celebrate the first nationwide Space Day. A National Space Day exhibition was organized for school and college students in collaboration with the Department of Physics, SPPU on August 23, 2024. Samir Dhurde delivered two talks titled 'India and Space Astronomy' at IIT, Dhanbad on August 21, 2024, and 'Space Astronomy' for teachers at the State Council for Educational Research and Training ( SCERT), Bihar.