Telescopes for All 2022

An IAU Global Outreach Project

15 communities of underrepresented groups around the world have been selected to receive telescopes signed by astronauts and Nobel Laureates.

The IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO) along with our partners, Stars Shine for Everyone (Sterren Schitteren voor Iedereen, SSVI) and the University of Leiden are pleased to announce the awardees of the 2022 Telescopes for All project. The project seeks to broaden the horizons of children, parents, and educators alike to spark an interest in science and promote equal opportunities to access astronomy.

The 2022 Telescopes for All project received 104 applications from 35 countries with the active support of the IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs). The selected proposals will bring telescopes to underserved communities in Puerto Rico and childhood cancer patients in Iraq; they will help tackle educational disparities in Chad, Bangladesh and Madagasgar; and they will improve access to STEAM education in Mexico and rural communities in Botswana. Each of the winning proposals expands access to and knowledge of astronomy – two of the main goals of the OAO.

The telescopes have been awarded to the following proposals:

Astronomía en los Barrios (Astronomy in the Neighbourhoods), Astroamigos Concepcion del Uruguay, Argentina
Telescopes for All in Bangladesh, Astronomy Science Society of RUET (ASSR), Bangladesh
Primary School Astronomy Project with Women in STEM-BW (WiS), Women in STEM-BW (WiS), Botswana
Astro Tchad, Association Tchadienne D’astronomie, Chad
Telescope for All in India, Samanta Chandra Sekhar Astronomy Group, India
Children's Support Program Using the Telescope: Fighting Cancer, Veterinary Medicine College/ Al-Muthanna University, Dr Mohenned Alsaadawi, Iraq
Astronomy at School, Sciences Physiques et Avenir, Madagascar
Velada Estrellada (Starry Evening), CiriAn, Mexico
The Astronomy Bicycle Between the Countries of Africa., "Alaa On Bike", Morocco
Por un Universo sin Límites (For a Universe without Limits), Asociación Nicaragüense de Astronomía Aficionada "Los Cadejos", Nicaragua
Cosmic Telescope, Cosmic Tribe, Pakistan
Telescopes for All in Pakistan, Project Stargazers by Talha Noor, Pakistan
Skies at the Reach of my People, OCCAE (Community Observers of the Sky for Astronomy and Education), Puerto Rico, USA
Tanga Telescope for All, The Open University of Tanzania, Tanga Regional Centre, Tanzania
A Telescope for a School in Rocha, AAR: Aprendiendo Astronomía en Rocha (Learning Astronomy in Rocha), Uruguay

Each selected proposal will receive a special edition telescope celebrating the OAO’s 10th anniversary. They are self-built Newtonian telescopes, custom made with Bresser parts by the amateur telescope building group Kijkerbouw of the Public Observatory Armand Pien (Ghent University) in Belgium for SSVI. The equipment comes complete with a telescope tube, a wooden mount, a viewfinder, zenith prism, solar filter, three Plössl eyepieces, and an electronic eyepiece (webcam). We will begin shipping the telescopes later this year.

Acknowledgements

The OAO and SSVI would like to acknowledge and thank BRESSER for donating the telescopes, eyepieces, cameras and solar foil, and Universe Awareness/Leiden University for shipping. Special thanks to Ghent University’s Department of Physics and Astronomy for providing all the facilities to make SSVI possible. The OAO and SSVI would also like to thank the following individuals and organisations for supporting the project and sponsoring the physical assemblage of the telescope through SSVI: Rob Walrecht Productions for educational materials, Wim Maats, Peter Louwman, Thierry Pauwels, A.C.G VZW, Koen Geukens, Jan Van Gastel, Erik Dijk, André De Coster, VVS Capella, Yves Baes, fam. Bataille-Isebaert. Our special thanks to all scientists, Nobel Prize winners and astronauts for their support on this project.

Contact

Please address questions to:

Suzana Filipecki Martins (she/her)

International Outreach Officer, IAU OAO

telescopes4all@oao.iau.org

Jean Pierre Grootaerd

Stars Shine for Everyone

Email: jeanpierre.grootaerd@ugent.be

Pedro Russo Astronomy & Society Group & Dep. of Science Communication & Society Leiden University Email: russo@strw.leidenuniv.nl

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 IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO) is a joint project of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). The mission of the OAO is to engage the public in astronomy through access to astronomical information and communication of the science of astronomy. This is implemented through a network of IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs) and the IAU’s engagement initiatives with the public. The work of the OAO is about building bridges between the IAU and the global astronomy community, and through international collaboration, to make astronomy accessible to all.