Flashback - The Philippine scene in IYA 2009

Here are just a few highlights of what transpired in the Philippines for the IYA 2009 that I compiled from different posts of Astronomical organizations in the Philippines:

The opening ceremony of IYA 2009 Philippine celebration was held on February 16 2009 at the SM Mall of Asia, coinciding with the National Astronomy week.

• Approval of the RTU Diploma in Astronomy. The first Astronomy program to be offered via Distance Learning Education (DLE).
  
• Pauline Pearl Divinagracia, a student at the Rizal Technological University (RTU) taking up BS
  Astronomy Technology, has been chosen to represent the Philippines at
  the opening ceremonies of the International Year of Astronomy 2009
  (IYA2009) in Paris, France on January 15-16, 2009.
• Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP) uploaded a page for the RTU Department of Astronomy  in the ALP website
• ALP began the Philippine Journal of Astronomy, the first astronomical journal in the Philippines. The first issue was released in March and the second in June.
  
•  The 1st Philippine Astronomical Convention. The PAC was held at RTU.
• Jan 26, 2009 - Partial Solar Eclipse (which was mistakenly reported by the media as an annular solar eclipse). ALP and Sidewalk Astronomers - Philippines observed successfully at the Manila Bay. Cloudy weather conditions for Visayas and Mindanao.
• IYA-PAS Educational Campus Tour. Over 1000 Philippine Science High School students and faculty members attending Engr. Dacanay's lecture.
• The first Philippine Astronomical Society's PASilip. The viewing of the moon at the Manila Observatory roofdeck on February 1.
• ALP's establishment of the Philippine Sunspot Number Program.
• The Mindanao State University- Iligan Institute of Technology Astronomical Society Activities:
  Lantaw Luna: View the Moon on Feb 11
•  The Astronomical League of the Philippines and the Rizal Technological University signed a historic Memorandum of Agreement which will bolster each other's activities and projects, specifically in formal astronomy education.
• The 3rd Philippine Messier Marathon on March 28, 2009 at the dark skies of Caliraya, Laguna.
• 100 Hours of Astronomy. A four day activity from April 2-4.
• Dr. Armando Lee or 'Doc Lee' - first Philippine produced MS Astronomy graduate.
• Ordinary people came to enjoy IYA such as the following:
• "Dinumog kami ng mga street children d2 sa Malibay overpass! Ang saya d2!" - Doc Lee
• 100HA in the Seven Suites Hotel Observatory in Antipolo. A group of about 60
  Dumagats came (The first time these natives saw a telescope). Alaga sila ng isang NGO based in Rizal Province.
• The BusinessMirror released an article about the 100 Hours of Astronomy entitled, "Knowledge comes through the telescope"
• Partial Solar Eclipse of 2009. ALP and UP AstroSoc sent teams to China to Observe totality
  
• Integration of Astronomy in the Rizal and History courses through a book by Prof. Jose Fadul.
• Establishment of a Philippine Astronomy Social Network.
• Inclusion of the Philippine Journal of Astronomy in the SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System (SAO/NASA ADS).
• IYA 2009 National Astronomy Olympiad, organized by the IYA 2009 NOC in cooperation with UP NISMED
• ALP page on Facebook :)
• International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO) in Taiwan. The Philippines bagged its 1st silver (Lance Co Ting Keh of PSHS). The other awards were 2 bronze (Ralph Ugalino and Gio Elegado of the PSHS-main and Bicol, respectively), best presentation for the international team field investigation (Emmanuel Codillo of Catanduanes National HS).
• StarPeace - Indonesia and Philippines: construction of peace bridge on South China sea (Dec 4-5), public viewing and general live webcasting with StarPeace ambassadors Dr. Armando Lee and Avivah Yamani 
• Galilean Nights - An extension of 100 HA on Dec 22-24
  
• Beauty without Borders - telescope viewing sessions in Antipolo
  

These are just some of the few activities in the Philippines conducted in observance of the IYA. Astronomy related orgs have many other activities that transpired during the duration of the year. I hope we can continue to promote Astronomy in the country beyond the celebration of IYA 2009.

Clear Skies for 2010!

Update on IYA 2009 National Olympiad

The IYA 2009 National Olympiad was put on hold after the calamities brought about by the continuous typhoons that hit the Philippines. This 2010, the Olympiad will push through. The regional elimination is scheduled on January 15. There are still regions with no participants, and so they are given the chance to register until January 8. The DepEd and the IYA-NOC are still working on the venues for the event.

Interested applicants can avail of the registration form via the IYA Philippines website

IYA 2009 National Astronomy Olympiad

The National Organizing Commitee of the IYA2009, in cooperation with UP NISMED, will be holding the first IYA2009 Philippine Olympiad. The Olympiad is open to both secondary and collegiate level, both competing in their respective levels. The Olympiad will be conducted in two stages: a regional and a national.

The regional eliminations will be held simultaneously in 17 regions of the country. The eliminations has been postponed to November 7. The finals will be held at UP-NISMED, Quezon City on 11 December 2009


You can download the registration form here:
http://www.astronomy2009.ph/cgi-bin/download.pl/files/pdf/astroolympiad-registrationform.pdf

For more details visit the IYA2009 Philippines Official Website.

For queries please contact Dr. Merle C. Tan, Director of UP-NISMED and Chairperson of the IYA2009 Olympiad at telephone numbers 981-8500 loc. 3901 to 3910, 927-4276 and 928-1563 or through Email.

400 years of Astronomy

International Year of Astronomy
400 years of exploring the sky.


In late 1609, word of a Dutch lens maker’s invention, that could magnify distant objects, reached the Italian scientist, Galileo Galilei. The invention was made up of two lenses in a tube, the very first refractor telescope. Galileo created a telescope for himself and used it to view the night sky. With this, he was able to make discovery after discovery; a new world as it was deemed. Among his discoveries were craters and mountains on the Moon, four of the largest satellites of Jupiter (Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto), phases of Venus, and the stars of the Milky Way.

Galileo formally released his observations in 1610, in his book The Starry Messenger. His discoveries astounded astronomers everywhere. But since the Church accepted the Ptolemaic system (Ptolemy’s Earth-centered view, rather than Copernicus’ Sun-centered belief), they denied the discoveries of Galileo and had him spend the last years of his life under house arrest.

In the year of Galileo’s death, Isaac Newton was born. He developed a new type of telescope in 1672, the reflector. Aside from that, Newton was able to produce a solid mathematical foundation to the astronomical views of Copernicus and Kepler, alongside his discovery of the laws of gravity.

By the end of the 18th century astronomers were observing the sky with improved telescopes, and have been surveying the sky for celestial objects. One of them is William Herschel who created large telescopes which he used to sweep the sky for objects beyond the solar system. This led to the discovery of Uranus, and many other celestial bodies.

Along came the spectroscope in the 1850s, which was invented by two German physicists, Kirchoff and Bunsen. With the spectroscope, astronomers were able to identify Herschel’s mysterious nebulas. The spectroscope introduced a new science, the marriage of astronomy to physics – astrophysics.

With new scientific discoveries, such as Einstein’s theory of relativity, and the development of larger and more powerful telescopes, such as George Hale’s glass giants, more things are discovered and explored in the night sky. We now have various telescopes designed to look at the various wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum. And with the rivalry of superpowers, many discoveries and firsts are made through space exploration.

Much has changed since the time of Galileo. In 400 years time, with the advancement in learning, we now know more than what Galileo knew. With our grasp reaching out into the endless space, now is the best time to venture into astronomy, be it amateur or professional. With the rate of discovery there is always something new for every seeking eye.

International Year of Astronomy 2009

Philippines


2009 marks the 400th anniversary of the first astronomical observations with the use of a telescope. This year has been declared by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) as the International Year of Astronomy (IYA). This world wide event is supported by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Affairs Organization (UNESCO).

1st telescope used in astronomy
The telescope was said to be invented by a Dutch lens maker. It was later modified by Galileo Galilei in 1609 and used, for the first time, for astronomical observations. Galileo’s telescope was able to magnify objects up to 30 times. Among the celestial objects he observed was the moon, Venus, Jupiter, and stars with magnitudes unobservable by the naked eye.

IYA Philippines
Each country has a National Committee on Astronomy (NCA) organized by the IAU. The NCA is composed of individual IAU members of the country, and is tasked to coordinate the event from all over the world. Along with the NCA is the Single Point of Contact (SPOC), who is tasked to coordinate with different private and government organizations who wish to participate with IYA. The SPOC will also serve as link between the Philippine Node and the IAU. The NAC in the Philippines organized a National Organizing Committee (NOC) in a meeting held on Feb. 2, 2007 at the Rizal Technological University. The NOC seeks to get the involvement government agencies and institutions, local astronomy organizations, and the science community.
IAU NCA Philippines:
Dr. Bernardo M. Soriano, Jr. (PAGASA, AGSSB) – chair
Dr. Cynthia Celebre (PAGASA, AsRDS) – SPOC
Dr. Jesus Torres (RTU, Department of Astronomy)


Planned activities
The IYA 2009 celebration is still in its planning phase but several ideas have been presented. Also, Dr. Celebre is trying to gather local legends with regards to astronomy in our culture; one of which is about the ‘mamahi’ in Sulu, which was reported in the Philippine Daily Inquirer by Mr. Ambrosio of UP. Other activities involve: lectures, exhibits, sidewalk viewing, and many others.

Philippines IYA 2009 website
www.astronomy2009.ph
Launched on September 23, 2007, the launching of the Philippine IYA website coincided with the observance of the autumnal equinox. The site will be updated with news and preparations of the IYA celebration, so everyone is invited to visit the site to keep in check.

Participation
Organizations and individuals who wish to participate in the Philippine IYA 2009 celebration can contact Dr. Cynthia Celebre or call the IYA Secretariat office at (02) 434-2715.