The role of ObservatoriesThe role of Observatories

Ian Robson

UK ATC

Royal Observatory Edinburgh

Ian Robson

UK ATC

Royal Observatory Edinburgh

Astronomy ‘outreach’Astronomy ‘outreach’

We have three general categories: Producers

astronomers, observatories, facilities

Mediators (distributors) PIO professionals, PR depts, planetaria

Deliverers astronomers, enthusiasts, agencies, planetaria

Of course in reality many of these boundaries are very blurred – and this is a good thing

ObservatoriesObservatories

Observatories and facilities are the bedrock for the ‘Producers’ of outreach material

They provide the infrastructure to allowobservational astronomers to produce the exciting scientific results

They also provide the employment for many of the next category – the PIOs

Many provide a focus for direct outreach and members of the third category, including enthusiasts and amateur groups

They are often the repository of the history of the subject

Fast FactsFast Facts

Observatories span a wide range of capability and dedication to ‘outreach’ research activity funding location requirement

Research ActivityResearch Activity

Cutting-edge,Cutting-edge,

current state-ofcurrent state-of

the-artthe-art

HistoricalHistorical

observatoryobservatory

(none)(none)

everything ineverything in

betweenbetween

LocationLocationLocationLocationLocationLocationLocationLocationLocationLocation

Funding for OutreachFunding for Outreach

I wish!I wish!I wish!I wish!

MissionMission

Many observatories and facilities undertake outreach as part of their ‘mission requirement’ – this is to be encouraged and an example of good practice from sponsoring agencies

Many operate outreach because of their inbuilt mission – driven by individuals – it is incumbent on all professionals and organisations to encourage this and support it wherever possible

The Education AspectThe Education Aspect

Many observatories have educational programmes directly linked to the school curriculum

Some have focused their efforts on the continued professional development of teachers – ‘teach the teachers’

Many have visitor centres with clear educational themes, or staff that give lectures to school children with a curriculum related educational content

A common denominatorA common denominator

How well do we do ?How well do we do ?

View your web-page as if you were a complete stranger and member of the public

Is it attractive/exciting on first viewing? How easy is it to find out the ‘information for the

public’ section? Is the directory tree sensible or just confusing? Are the images all much bigger in size (pixels)

than they need to be?

The Big PictureThe Big Picture In trying to get a handle on where we stand worldwide I

attempted to contact most of the ground-based observatories and offer them the opportunity to answer a simple questionnaire

These were 58 ground-based observatories plus 2 space-based (STScI and ESA Hubble) taken from: http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/astroweb/telspace.html

I tried to find each observatory from the web and from there contact their PIO or named contact person

as well as obtaining primary information (health of stock) this also served to test the effectiveness of the web-page, and the level of customer service

18 replies received so far

The questionnaireThe questionnaireTotal Outreach Funding per annum:Total Outreach Funding per annum:

Major source of fundingMajor source of funding

Number of 'permanent' staff employed on outreachNumber of 'permanent' staff employed on outreach

Number of part-time helpersNumber of part-time helpers

Number of visitors per yearNumber of visitors per year

Number of school children visitsNumber of school children visits

Do you have a formal programme of education?Do you have a formal programme of education?

AttractionsAttractions

What do you feel has worked well in terms of outreachWhat do you feel has worked well in terms of outreachsuccess?success?

What has not worked well?What has not worked well?

Number of research press releases per yearNumber of research press releases per year

Do you have good contacts with the local media?Do you have good contacts with the local media?

Do your stories get well covered and if so, what is the secret?Do your stories get well covered and if so, what is the secret?

What proportion (%) of research workers actively participate inWhat proportion (%) of research workers actively participate inoutreach?outreach?

The answersThe answersTotal Outreach Funding per annum:Total Outreach Funding per annum:

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

$k

Number of 'permanent' staff employed on outreach: Number of 'permanent' staff employed on outreach: 0 - 200 - 20

Number of part-time helpers:Number of part-time helpers: very variedvery varied

$2M to zero, average £290k$2M to zero, average £290k

government, state,government, state,Major source of funding:Major source of funding:

Number of visitors:Number of visitors: 300,000300,000

The answers – what workedThe answers – what worked

Ask the Astronomer not just ‘professional’

Open days/nights/looking through telescopes

Use of telescopes Jodrell, Gemini/CFHT, ESO, Faulkes

Portable planetaria, visits to schools

and what didn’t.......and what didn’t.......

Talks that went on for too long..... Always fighting for resources...... Place in the management train..... Difficulty of getting quality exhibits for VC... The unpredictability of the weather.....