African Astronomical Society’s Post

Hey, Astronomy lovers! We're trying to find out what you need to make it easier for you to explore the skies. We are asking you to complete this anonymous survey. On the first page of the survey you will find information about the study and the consent form We'll be sharing out our results later this summer. Survey: HTTP://bit.ly/AstEco An Institutional Review Board responsible for human subjects research at The University of Arizona reviewed this research project and found it to be acceptable, according to applicable state and federal regulations and University policies designed to protect the rights and welfare of participants in research. You may find out more or ask questions of the PI, Sanlyn Buxner, at buxner@arizona.edu.

Introducing the fifth edition of Umnyele wezulu, the IAU GA 2024’s daily journal. Explore “Towards Equity in Astronomy” and stay updated with the latest developments and insights. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/dQUmWDtf

We are excited to share our latest research on Self-Supervised Learning (SSL) based Foundation Model (FM) applied to radio astronomy, specifically using MeerKAT wide-field continuum images! 📡 In this paper, we demonstrate that pre-trained FM can provide great performance on complex astronomical datasets without the need for extensive data preprocessing (assuming no distribution shift issue (ongoing research - more details soon)). By leveraging the DINO framework with ResNet and Vision Transformer backbones, our models matched state-of-the-art results for morphology classification and excelled in predicting the number of compact sources. This scalable approach significantly reduces data preparation time and paves the way for more efficient analysis in the era of the Square Kilometer Array (SKA). Looking forward to exploring further applications of SSL in astronomy! 🌌 🔗 Paper: https://lnkd.in/edcFNSzM

I had a great conversation about astronomy, science fiction, SETI, and more with the delightful Andrew Fraknoi. But more importantly, we talked about his open source intro astronomy textbook. Since many of you here are interested in learning astronomy in a systematic manner, his textbook would be an excellent start. When we have adequate resources (both financial and technical), we will translate it in Urdu as well. In the meantime, enjoy the conversation: https://lnkd.in/ehCVKmXT

🌌📚 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐦𝐨𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 "𝐆𝐮𝐢́𝐚 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐢́𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐒𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐚 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫" 🚀📖 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁? Many students find astronomy hard to relate to and understand, with its abstract concepts and complex information. 𝗧𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆! Introduce "Guía turística del Sistema Solar" to your classroom. Designed like a travel guide, this innovative book transforms the solar system into an exciting series of destinations, sparking students' imaginations and making difficult science concepts accessible and engaging. Encourage students to 'travel' through the book at their own pace, discovering fascinating facts and developing a genuine interest in space science. 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 "𝗚𝘂𝗶́𝗮 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶́𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗦𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗮 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿": 🌍 Makes space science approachable and fun. 🌟 Encourages self-paced exploration, enhancing understanding. 📈 Boosts scientific literacy and enthusiasm. 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗮 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺? Click the link to grab your copy and start your students on a journey through the stars! 👉 https://loom.ly/2Tpv9RA #SpaceScienceInClass #AstronomyForKids #DualLanguageLearning #EngagingReaders

In my opinion it's an historical achievement that deserves to be known. Thanks Gabriella Bernardi for this info and thanks #nationalgeographic for this interesting article!

📃Scientific paper: Evaluating Direct RF Sampling Performance for RFSoC-based Radio-frequency Astronomy Receivers Abstract: As the maximum RF input and output frequencies of the integrated data converters in RFSoC increase, it becomes practical to digitize and synthesize RF signals in the majority of C band directly without analogue up and down mixing circuits. The elimination of the mixer circuits can significantly simplify the architecture of the receivers or readouts for radio astronomy telescopes. For the systems with large bandwidth or high channel counts, direct sampling can dramatically reduce the size and cost of overall system. This paper with focus on summarising part of the preliminary characterization results for direct sampling with RFSoC data converters in higher order Nyquist zones. Continued on ES/IODE ➡️ https://etcse.fr/bGvq ------- If you find this interesting, feel free to follow, comment and share. We need your help to enhance our visibility, so that our platform continues to serve you.

One aspect of Space Science Studies-Light Space Science is part of the Middle School and High School Next Generation Science Standards. Space is often studied by watching excellent videos, trying out telescopes (yes, they can be difficult to use), and using models. Yet space is on view regularly, attracts millions of amateur observers, and can be a fascinating subject to study. Light, specifically the electromagnetic spectrum, generated by nuclear fusion in stars helps us see many objects in space. It can travel large distances fast and carries lots of information about space to us. Help students understand the nature of light and begin their space studies by investigating the Inverse Square Law. Readily available materials are all you need, and students can observe and quantify what happens to light as it travels away from its source. This lab investigation aligns with the standards and is a great jumping-off point for Space Studies. https://lnkd.in/gVd_-yiD Check out other products in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. https://lnkd.in/gpBJ7hn

One great thing about this article is that it gives you an inside look into the scientific process as it relates to Astronomy. It's not as simple as taking a pretty picture! The initial image raises questions, which inspire hypotheses, which can be tested with follow up observations, not just images, but Spectra - where lots of the details of understanding what the image shows come into play - and it takes time. And as noted, this is preliminary findings without yet going through the stringent peer review process that will be needed....And I am grateful for the inside look: https://lnkd.in/eEqSYFH4

Opportunity