The Faulkes Telescope Project

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The Faulkes Telescope Project

• An excellent new science education opportunity
  for Australian schools
• Dr.Q.A.Parker
• Macquarie University/AAO

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FINAL PROGRAMME
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DEST ASISTM GRANT 110KBRINGING DEEP SPACE INTO
THE CLASSROOM

• The Faulkes Telescope, the world's largest
  dedicated to education, is the basis for a pilot
  project to investigate how astronomy and
  technology combined can improve science
  engagement by students.
• The robotic telescope is accessed/controlled via
  the internet bringing the wonders of Deep Space
  into the classroom.
• The on-line experience addresses key science
  curriculum areas while developing generic skills
  using unique, innovative, cutting-edge
  technology.
• Students can compete and take ownership of real
  research projects.
• Support comes from Teaching Associates,
  consultants and teachers (who will obtain
  professional development training).
• The project will develop interactive materials to
  integrate this 10M new facility (Australian
  schools have 10 access) into the science
  curriculum.

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PROJECT STRUCTURE
Consultants Hedberg, Smith, Van Rooy,
Ferguson Oliver, FT support
Project co-ordinators A/Prof Q.A.Parker Prof.D.For
bes
Project Admin L.Moore
VIC CLUSTER
NSW CLUSTER
TA M.Stupar
TA L.Germany
Teachers, classes
Teachers, classes
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Two 2-metre Professional telescopes in Hawaii
and Australia

• Largest telescopes in the world for educational
  use!

Internet controlled
Fully robotic!
Real-time, real science, real scientists!
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Faulkes Telescopes
20 million initial donation from Dill Faulkes
Educational Trust
Now part of las combres a vision of Wayne
Rosing
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MILESTONES Proposed timeline

• Sept 06 Project starts
• Oct 06 Faulkes Telescope Call for proposals'.
• Nov 06 Results of proposal round returned to
  cluster schools
• Feb 07 First data release
• Mar 07 Release of results from school research
  reports
• June 07 Mid-project report
• July 07 Faulkes Telescope second Call for
  proposals'.
• Sep 07 Results of proposal round 2 returned to
  cluster schools.
• Oct 07 Second Faulkes Telescope data release.
• Nov 07 Release of results of school research
  reports
• April 08 Dispatch of FT information pack to
  schools,
• Project ends, Final report

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Instrumentation
2048 x 2048 pixel CCD 4.6 x 4.6 arcmins field of
view Sloan filter set - UBVRI H alpha OIII
narrow-band filters Basic spectrograph (being
commissioned now)
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FT-South based at Siding Spring
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Main aim of the FT Project
To stimulate school students and to engage them
in science, maths and technology
Day time observing from UK/Australia while dark
in Australia/Hawaii
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Goodrum et al.

• This key 2001 report to DEST concluded that
  science teaching in Australias primary and
  secondary schools is far from ideal
• E.g. the medium amount of science taught is less
  than 1 hour per week at primary level!
• By the time they start secondary school many are
  already forever lost to a career in science
• Many students grow up not having the faintest
  idea how things work
• If Australia is to remain competitive in a world
  ever more controlled by technology then we need a
  core resource of future scientists from which our
  stake in the technological world will be retained
  and hopefully enhanced

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Motivating students to study science and
technology
Excitement of real discoveries
Inherent fascination of astronomy and space
Collaboration with real scientists
Fabulous images
Up to the minute science
Cutting edge multi-million dollar technology
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The classroom of the future

• Sole original purpose of FT is as a teaching and
  learning facility for school children
• The FT is fully automated and remotely controlled
• It is designed as the observatory for the
  classroom
• Students actively plan, research and observe with
  the telescope sometimes in real time but always
  through the internet
• Programmes can be tailored specifically to tie in
  with the new syllabi for Yr 7-10 HSC science

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Student ownership of their projects

• Highly flexible operation
• State of the art technology but
• Designed for use by school age students from
  primary level to pre-university
• Key point students teachers have ownership of
  their project and can point the telescope at
  their own selected targets

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Not just astronomy!
Communications
Technology
Materials
ICT
Electronics
Robotics
Image processing
Mechanics
Optics
Mechanics
Mathematics
And links with . . .
Geography
History
Business studies
English
Art . . . . .
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Exploitation in NSW/VIC

• The telescope should become available in 2006
  finally well on track
• Until now there were no serious, co-ordinated
  plans for NSW schools to make use of the 10
  Australian share in the Faulkes Telescope
• Remember Australia gets this for FREE simply by
  hosting the telescope in Coonabarabran, NSW
• The opportunity exists, the telescope exists but
  does the will and vision exist to make use of
  this new facility?

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Faulkes projects aim to rekindle interest in
science, maths and technology
Stunning images from research grade telescopes
Exciting and stimulating
Genuine scientific discoveries
Student initiative and thought
Sense of ownership of projects
Students doing real science
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This projectDEST partnership with NSW/VIC
cluster schools, Macquarie and Swinburne
Universities

• Will research the most effective and appropriate
  means of using Australias 10 FT time
• TAs will visit cluster schools in metropolitan
  and rural areas to research rules of engagement
  to foster student interest in science and physics
• Broad-band internet will play a key role
• The results should have relevance to effective FT
  use and curriculum development for next 10years

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BASIC DEST/ASISTM GRANT BUDGET
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How will schools use the telescopes?
On-line in real time
All via the internet
Sessions bookedTelescope controlledimages
returned

• Additional time off-line, out of school hours

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Projects for all ages and abilities of users

• High schools

12-16 year olds
16-18 year olds (HSC)
School astronomy clubs
Adult learners
Gifted and talented students
Lifelong learners
Visitor centres
Undergraduates
Professional/amateur astronomers (via schools)
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Simpler observing projects for younger students
Not just pretty pictures but a photogenic
mechanism for student engagement in physics in
general and astronomy in particular
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FT Open to Australian Schools

• Has the potential to play an important role in
  physics education for at least the next 10 years
• Works on many different levels
• Covers a wide variety of science educational
  areas in maths, science and technology including
• Scientific methodology
• Generic skills
• Planning, observing, data collating, testing and
  comparing
• An excellent use of and test of the capacity of
  the broad-band internet connectivity in NSW to
  deliver high quality scientific data sets to
  school classrooms

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Education/Research Projects for HSC students
Relevant to syllabuses
Suitable for coursework
Excellent for key skills
Genuine scientific investigations
Backed by full web materials
Contribute to scientific knowledge
Linked with professional scientists
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Brightness profile usingSAOImage/ds9
software This is free and can be downloaded
easily
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Examples of Faulkes Projects

• Clusters of stars
• Observing stars in three wavebands to give
  colour tempand relative luminosity
• Hence age of cluster

• Planetary Nebulae
• Imaging, measuring and classifying
• Identification of central stars

• Variable stars
• Monitoring variation in brightness
• Estimating sizes of eclipsing binary stars

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What Macquarie/Swinburne offer

• Sydney/Melbourne based universities both with
  strong and rapidly growing astronomy programmes
  with existing ties to Faulkes.
• Close ties with the AAO (Faulkes partner) through
  joint appointment of Q.Parker and close physical
  proximity to AAO and ATNF
• Strong existing Astronomy outreach programmes
  (e.g. via Macquarie Foundation for Astronomy with
  traveling planetarium can instantly provide
  valuable links in to FT
• Developed plans for a new Univ.Observatory to
  include a fixed planetarium and possible FT node
• Offer Sydney/Melbourne based university astronomy
  fronts to core NSW/VICORIAN FT issues with
  professional research astronomers as
  contact/support
• Suitable venues for potential annual teacher FT
  workshops, ICT support infrastructure (e.g. ICT
  innovations centre) providing access to FT node
  and observatory planetarium/telescopes

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Existing FT UK web presence
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Real FT North imaging data..multi filter
combination
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nsw
Faulkes Australia web site http//astronomy.swin.
edu.au/faulkes/index.html
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Examples of Education/Research Projects

• Asteroids and comets
• Discovering new main belt asteroids
• Orbit determinations for new NEAs
• Rotation rates of asteroids from light curves
• Classifying asteroids by colour measurements
• Observing comet tails

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Light curve for the asteroid Eros
Spreadsheet enabling HSC students to fit a simple
model
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Simulation using a rotating potato
Data is recorded by a light sensor connected to a
data logger and computer
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Student challengecan you simulate the real
asteroid data?
(Variables to consider rotation rate, shape,
angles, reflectivity)
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GlobularclusterM 51
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Examples of Education/Research Projects

• Galaxies
• Imaging and classifying
• Measuring spiral arms
• Analysing surface brightness profiles

• Interacting galaxies
• Imaging
• Simulation using Galaxy Collider software