At the IAU XXXI General Assembly currently taking place in Busan, South Korea, three IAU Hands-On Workshops (I-HOW) were today announced to take place in 2022–2023. Registration is now open for two of them and will open soon for a third. The I-HOW initiative was launched last year and will teach early-career scientists in developing countries how to access and analyse archived astronomical data for their research.

In November 2021 the IAU issued a call for applications to organise IAU Hands-On Workshops (I-HOW) supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and received 11 submissions. The goal of the workshops is to raise awareness among scientists in developing countries of the availability of astronomical data in the archives of both ground-based telescopes and space missions. These data can be used to solve specific astronomical problems and to expand research activities in developing countries. The workshops will also foster international collaboration between the early-career participants and established lecturers.

The first three workshops have now been selected to receive funding:

• Chile, VLTI-How, the VLTI High angular resolution Observations Workshop: infrared astronomy, Santiago, Chile, 10–22 October 2022
• Iran, Radio Astronomy Data Hands-On Workshop: will take place at IPM, radio astronomy, Tehran, Iran, in 2023 (date to be confirmed; consult the I-HOW website for registration at a later time)
• South Africa, X-ray Vision of our Universe; A data-driven approach, X-ray astronomy: Potchefstroom, South Africa, 6–17 February 2023

The IAU has allocated €35 000 each to the workshops in Chile and Iran, and €17 500 to the workshop in South Africa, which will be co-funded by COSPAR. The local organisers of the workshops will provide a similar amount. 

Each workshop will have about 10 international lecturers and 30–40 PhD students, postdocs, and junior staff/faculty members. The lodging costs of all participants (lecturers and students) will be covered in full for the full duration of the two-week-long workshop. Some students will also receive support to cover the travel costs.

Debra Elmegreen, IAU President, notes, “The IAU is very grateful to the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation for their support of this important new initiative. Providing training to astronomers across the entire world to strengthen their research efforts is a key goal of our IAU Strategic Plan.” Mariano Mendez, director of the I-HOW initiative adds, “We are very excited about these workshops which will help the careers of junior astronomers in developing countries, and give a significant impetus to the progress of science and technology there.”

More information

The IAU is the international astronomical organisation that brings together more than 12 000 active professional astronomers from more than 100 countries worldwide. Its mission is to promote and safeguard astronomy in all its aspects, including research, communication, education and development, through international cooperation. The IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on them. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world's largest professional body for astronomers.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation fosters path-breaking scientific discovery, environmental conservation, patient care improvements and preservation of the special character of the Bay Area. Follow @MooreFound.

Links

• I-HOW website

Contacts

Mariano Mendez
I-HOW Director
Email: mariano@astro.rug.nl

Trity Pourbahrami
Communications Officer, Science Program Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Email: trityp@moore.org

Lars Lindberg Christensen
IAU Director of Communications
Cell: 1 520 461 0433/+49 173 38 72 621
Email: lars.christensen@noirlab.edu