The
International Year of Astronomy (
IYA2009) is a year-long celebration of
astronomyAstronomy is the scientific study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere...
, taking place in 2009 to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the first recorded astronomical observations with a
telescopeA telescope is an instrument designed for the observation of remote objects by the collection of electromagnetic radiation. The first known practically functioning telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 17th century...
by
Galileo GalileiGalileo Galilei was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations, and support for Copernicanism...
and the publication of
Johannes KeplerJohannes Kepler was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, and key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution. He is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of...
's
Astronomia novaThe Astronomia nova is a book, published in 1609, that contains the results of the astronomer Johannes Kepler's ten-year long investigation of the motion of Mars.-Background:...
in the
17th centuryThe 17th Century was that century which lasted from 1601 to 1700 in the Gregorian calendar.The 17th Century falls into the Early Modern period of Europe and was characterized by the Baroque cultural movement, the French Grand Siècle dominated by Louis XIV, and the beginning of modern science and...
. The Year was declared by the 62nd General Assembly of the
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achieving of world peace...
. A global scheme, laid out by the
International Astronomical UnionThe International Astronomical Union is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
(IAU), has also been endorsed by
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945...
—the UN body responsible for Educational, Scientific and Cultural matters.
The
International Year of Astronomy (
IYA2009) is a year-long celebration of
astronomyAstronomy is the scientific study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere...
, taking place in 2009 to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the first recorded astronomical observations with a
telescopeA telescope is an instrument designed for the observation of remote objects by the collection of electromagnetic radiation. The first known practically functioning telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 17th century...
by
Galileo GalileiGalileo Galilei was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations, and support for Copernicanism...
and the publication of
Johannes KeplerJohannes Kepler was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, and key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution. He is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of...
's
Astronomia novaThe Astronomia nova is a book, published in 1609, that contains the results of the astronomer Johannes Kepler's ten-year long investigation of the motion of Mars.-Background:...
in the
17th centuryThe 17th Century was that century which lasted from 1601 to 1700 in the Gregorian calendar.The 17th Century falls into the Early Modern period of Europe and was characterized by the Baroque cultural movement, the French Grand Siècle dominated by Louis XIV, and the beginning of modern science and...
. The Year was declared by the 62nd General Assembly of the
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achieving of world peace...
. A global scheme, laid out by the
International Astronomical UnionThe International Astronomical Union is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
(IAU), has also been endorsed by
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945...
—the UN body responsible for Educational, Scientific and Cultural matters. The opening ceremony was held in
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
on January 15–16, 2009. IYA2009 is scheduled to include numerous global projects and public events. The IAU also released a book and movie on the history of the telescope for this event.
Significance of 1609
In 1609,
Galileo GalileiGalileo Galilei was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations, and support for Copernicanism...
first turned one of his telescopes to the
night skyNight sky is a commonly used term most often employed to refer to the sky as it is seen at night. The term is usually associated with astronomy, with reference to views of heavenly bodies such as stars, the Moon and planets that become visible on a clear night after the Sun has set.The night sky...
and made astounding discoveries that changed humankind's understanding of our position in the
UniverseThe Universe comprises everything that physically exists, the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter and energy, and the physical laws and constants that govern them...
, including mountains and craters on the
MoonThe Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System. The average centre-to-centre distance from the Earth to the Moon is , about thirty times the diameter of the Earth. The common centre of mass of the system is located at about —a quarter the Earth's...
, a plethora of
starA star is a massive, luminous ball of plasma that is held together by gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth. Other stars are visible in the night sky, when they are not outshone by the Sun...
s invisible to the naked eye, and moons around
JupiterJupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass slightly less than one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all of the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas...
. In the same year,
Johannes KeplerJohannes Kepler was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, and key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution. He is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of...
published his work
Astronomia novaThe Astronomia nova is a book, published in 1609, that contains the results of the astronomer Johannes Kepler's ten-year long investigation of the motion of Mars.-Background:...
—in which he described the fundamental
laws of planetary motionsIn astronomy, Kepler's three laws of planetary motion are:#The orbit of every planet is an ellipse with the sun at a focus.#A line joining a planet and the sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time....
.
Vision of IYA2009
The vision of IYA2009 is to help people rediscover their place in the Universe through the sky, and thereby engage a personal sense of wonder and discovery. IYA2009 activities take place locally, nationally, regionally and internationally. National Nodes have been formed in each country to prepare activities for 2009. These nodes established collaborations between professional and amateur astronomers, science centres and science communicators to prepare activities for 2009. More than 140 countries are already involved. To help coordinate this huge global programme and to provide an important resource for the participating countries, the IAU has established a central Secretariat and an IYA2009 website as the principal IYA2009 resource for public, professionals and media alike.
Goals of IYA2009
The major goals of IYA2009 are to:
1. Increase scientific awareness;
2. Promote widespread access to new knowledge and observing experiences;
3. Empower astronomical communities in developing countries;
4. Support and improve formal and informal science education;
5. Provide a modern image of science and scientists;
6. Facilitate new networks and strengthen existing ones;
7. Improve the gender-balanced representation of scientists at all levels and promote greater involvement by underrepresented minorities in scientific and engineering careers;
8. Facilitate the preservation and protection of the world's cultural and natural heritage of dark skies in places such as urban oases, national parks and astronomical sites.
As part of the scheme, IYA2009 helps less well-established organizations from the developing world to become involved with larger organizations and deliver their contributions, linked via a huge global network. This initiative also aims at reaching economically disadvantaged young children across the globe and enhance their understanding of the world.
See also
- History of the telescope
- World Year of Physics 2005
The year 2005 has been named the World Year of Physics in recognition of the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein's "Miracle Year," in which he published four landmark papers, and the subsequent advances in the field of physics.-History:...
- 365 Days Of Astronomy
365 Days Of Astronomy is an educational podcast, inspired by the International Year of Astronomy, that will publish one podcast per day, for all 365 days of 2009...
- The World At Night
The World At Night is an international project to produce and present a collection of high-quality photos, videos, and virtual reality images of the night sky taken at various natural, cultural, and historic locations around the world....
- StarPeace Project
StarPeace Project is a global special project of the International Year of Astronomy . StarPeace project participants will hold public star parties near the border line of their country with a neighboring country. At the same time, another group of amateur astronomers will hold a public star party...
- International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
(IAU)
- 400 Years of the Telescope
400 Years of the Telescope is a documentary film created to coincide with the International Year of Astronomy in 2009. The film chronicles the history of the telescope from the time of Galileo and features interviews with leading astrophysicists and cosmologists from around the world, who explain...
documentary
- Galileoscope
The Galileoscope is a small , massively produced refractor telescope, designed with the intention of increasing public interest in astronomy and science...
- Global Hands-On Universe
In a paper published in 2007 by Dr. Pennypacker , the Global Hands-On Universe is presented as an educational program that enables students to investigate the Universe while applying tools and concepts from science, math, and technology....
- International Year of Astronomy commemorative coin
External links