From preschool to 8th grade, Malik Bossett attended an African-centered school in Oakland, California, where he was surrounded by people that looked like him. Then, he transferred to a predominately white high school where he was the only Black male in his graduating class.
Read the full story by Carly Banks at The NAU Review.
Advancing science goes hand in hand with educating scientists of the future and engaging the public. David Trilling and Mike Gowanlock have hosted two astroinformatics bootcamps introducing students from diverse backgrounds to the data science behind astronomy, including writing and testing algorithms to measure the properties of asteroids. Now they’re building small robotic telescopes that will enable students at NAU,… Read more
Where can you study extraterrestrial geology without leaving the planet? Northern Arizona, of course. The geology of this region, from Grand Canyon to Meteor Crater, offer unique educational experiences for students of astronomy and planetary science and may help researcher unlock clues into one of the most elusive questions—is there life on other planets? NAU’s Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science offers a lab course, taught by… Read more
The Emirates Mars Mission (EMM), the first interplanetary exploration undertaken by an Arab nation, has unveiled a series of groundbreaking observations of Mars’ smaller moon, Deimos. The observations, shared during a special session at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly (EGU23) in Vienna, used all three of the mission’s science instruments (EMUS, EMIRS and EXI) to reveal new details of Mars’ most mysterious moon and where it came… Read more
Graduate students, Ryder Strauss, Jessica Walsh, and Maria Chernyavskaya participated in a 200-person occultation campaign in February where they watched the Jupiter Trojan asteroid Polymele pass in front of a distant star. Here is Ryder’s summary (with pictures!).
Here is a recent press release about the campaign.
We know there is a big science result coming, but not mentioned in this press release. Note, Ryder says “You can spot Jessica’s yellow jacket in… Read more
It’s a project that could also improve life here on Earth.
“If you think about this project—it’s pretty ambitious,” said Dr. Christopher Edwards, associate professor in NAU’s department of astronomy and planetary science.
He’s over the moon about this opportunity.
“We’re going to send a spacecraft to orbit another planet, land on its moon, pick up samples and bring it back to Earth,” Edwards explained.
Read the article and see the video of the interview at FOX 10 Phoenix