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Kids love Astronomy and Space Science!
As parents and adults, we are always concerned about the science education
of our children. Children are innately inquisitive about the stars, planets and the heavens. Where
can we take them to satisfy this natural curiosity? A planetarium in Austin would be an
obvious destination for the family, providing a wonderful day for all to learn more about this
awesome universe we live in.
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Our students are failing the science TAKS
The Earth Science objectives of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS Objective 4) includes many
concepts about cycles, changes, and patterns in the sky. On average, students in Central Texas and Austin ISD
have missed every single question in the Earth Science section of the TAKS tests.
- 2003 TAKS: 9 questions asked; 9 missed.
- 2004 TAKS: 9 questions asked; 9 missed.
- 2005 TAKS: data not released.
This appalling statistic demands that we improve the science curriculum for our school children.
One perfect way to do that is to provide the experience of a planetarium where shows, demonstrations, exhibits, and
hands-on learning can strengthen our children’s skills and knowledge and thereby positively impact TAKS scores.
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Certain astronomical concepts are very difficult to explain without a planetarium.
A good example is precession. Do you know what this is exactly? Precession is caused by the wobbling in the rotational axis of
the Earth. A planetarium makes it possible to demonstrate this phenomenon and the resultant big picture effect for those of us
who live on this planet. There are many subjects like that besides precession, such as analemma, lunar nodes etc.
All these concepts come to life in a planetarium. Furthermore, the planetarium serves as a time machine, taking us back 2,000
years or 10,000 years to see the night sky, not to mention what we’ll see 10,000 years hence. All these phenomena and more
come to life in a planetarium!
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A planetarium provides support and training to educators
Teachers are required to teach about astronomy in our schools, but many teachers do not
receive adequate training in this particular field, nor do they have time to keep up with the latest discoveries and developments.
The Planetarium is the right place for this focus because it can offer education not only for kids and families, but also for educators.
A planetarium will train teachers in Astronomy and Space Sciences and we, in turn will see the results among our student body.
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A planetarium is a great source for educational material
Educators have a very difficult time creating professional level type educational materials in addition
to all their other job duties. Educators today need all the resources they can get and are therefore dependent on finding good,
professional grade materials online or though mail order, that prepares their students for the TEKS and TAKS tests. The Friends of the
Austin Planetarium already provides educational materials to educators, but we are only a handful of volunteers.
A planetarium would have a full time staff dedicated to this, and would have a depository of wonderful educational
material available for teachers for use in their class. The result is more and higher quality education for our children.
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A planetarium can help with science projects
When your kids are assigned a science project, how do they pick a topic and where do they begin? A planetarium can provide a database
full of possibilities relating to astronomy and the space sciences that will steal the show in the classroom.
Already the Friends of the Austin Planetarium assisted one youngster in such an endeavor that simply amazed both his teacher
and parents alike. A planetarium exists to provide this kind of service to the community.
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A planetarium is the depository of information on Astronomy and Space Sciences
Where do you go when you have a space or astronomy related question? Did your child ever asked you something you were not able to
answer? Or did you yourself ever wonder what dark matter really is or if the dark side of the moon is really dark?
Unfortunately, there are few places in the Austin area to get answers to such questions. One logical resource would, of course, be
a planetarium. The very function of a planetarium is the education of children and adults in Astronomy and Space Sciences.
As a matter of fact, if you have a space related question, you can already contact us on the “Contact Us” page or the “Astro News”
page of this website and a professional answer will be forthcoming!
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If the Dallas-Fort Worth area can support twelve planetariums, Austin can certainly support one!
What do they know up in North Texas that we do not in Central Texas? Apparently, they see and understand the need of a planetarium
in their community! And our research has shown that indeed DFW-area schools are scoring significantly better then our own in Central
Texas. If the DFW-area can support 12 planetariums, Austin can certainly support one!
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Most kids grow up never seeing the night sky
Our night sky has drastically changed over the past century. By the invention of the light bulb we have come to rely on light at
night and there is the common misperception that more is better. The most obvious downside of lighting up our nighttime cities
is that we have made the stars invisible. Anyone who has traveled to West Texas and had the opportunity to see the heavens in all
its splendor knows just how much we have lost. In a planetarium not only can we demonstrate the effect of light pollution, we can
recreate a picture perfect night sky. In knowing what we’ve lost, perhaps we will instill a motivation to preserve what we have
left.
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Austin is a major nexus for astronomy all across Central Texas
In Austin we have a university with a world-renowned astronomy program; we have a statewide legacy of space exploration,
and a significant aspect of our local industry is based in a variety of high technology fields. How can a city with such an
array of focal points lack a planetarium? Austin needs a planetarium to fulfill this call and to become a central rallying
point for the city’s myriad astronomical interests.
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