National Schools Observatory NSO

1
National Schools Observatory (NSO)
Dr Christopher Leigh (NSO Project Manager)
Astronet 18th June 2008
2
The Liverpool Telescope (LT)
Extra-solar planets
Active Galaxies
Supernova
Gamma Ray Bursts
Designed to investigate how the Universe
changes Able to react quickly to sudden outbursts
of energy
3
The Liverpool Telescope (LT)
Dark skys, good weather and an altitude of 2400m
combine to produce around 300 nights each year on
which observations can be secured.
Located on an extinct volcano on the Spanish
island of La Palma, off the coast of West Africa.
4
The Liverpool Telescope (LT)
The telescope is primarily used by Professional
Astronomers from LJMU, UK, Spain and
collaborators Students on LJMU Undergraduate and
Distance Learning Courses 5 set aside for use
by schoolchildren in the UK and Ireland
The National Schools Observatory
5
The Liverpool Telescope (LT)
The LT is primarily used by Professional
Astronomers from LJMU, UK, Spain and
collaborators Students on LJMU Undergraduate and
Distance Learning Courses 5 set aside for use
by school children in the UK and Ireland
The National Schools Observatory
Online link (GUI) between the schools and the
LT Ensures efficient use of allocated
time Simplify process so that young children (7)
can request images Protect systems so that
professional use is not affected
6
The NSO Portal
www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk
On average, the site serves around 4570 pages to
800 individual users each day There are currently
830 schools registered with the NSO
Approximately 800 pages of news, information,
workshops and projects Built around a facility
for children and teachers to request images from
the LT
7
The NSO Website Content
Moonsaic Project
Multimedia content aimed at demonstrating
difficult concepts and adding a bit of fun.
8
NSO Website Statistics
Pages served in 2007 2,200,000
Analysis of weekly IP visits shows significant
dips during UK school holidays, so we are
confident we are reaching our intended target.
9
The Go Observing Engine
Pupils select from an observing database of
several hundred objects
No human intervention between request and
download (1 to 2 days)
Since October 2004, there have been 10,000
observing requests
10
NSO Observations
Requests to use LT also tracks school
activity. We can determine when schools have less
time to use the LT, i.e. during exam
periods.
11
A real-world application of technology
The NSO aims to tap into the sense of excitement
and wonder that children show towards astronomy,
in order to further their knowledge of Science,
ICT and Mathematics (STEM).
12
Any Questions?
www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk