[Sgteachers] Washington NASA Space Grant Consortium Newsletter for Teachers

[Irene Svete]

The Washington NASA Space Grant Consortium's electronic newsletter for  
teachers provides curriculum ideas, links and other resources to help  
you better meet the Washington EALRs and the National Science  
Education Standards.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

-- HISTORIC MERCURY VIEWING
-- FREE ASTROBIOLOGY LECTURES
-- SPACE OUT! WORKSHOP (4-12)
-- BLAST BACK TO SCHOOL (K-12)
-- GALILEAN NIGHTS (K-12)
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HISTORIC MERCURY VIEWING

On September 29, NASA's Messenger spacecraft will fly by Mercury, the  
only one of the eight planets in our solar system that has not been  
fully seen.

An hour before the Mercury encounter, the Messenger science education  
team will begin covering the flight live on Twitter and Facebook. The  
group will work with the mission scientist for the next two days,  
providing live coverage of the preliminary results from the data  
streaming to Earth.

There is also a blog with information on how classes can connect and  
participate, as well as ideas for lessons leading up to and after the  
Mercury flyby, and full details of the specific questions that  
scientists are going to be asking through the spacecraft's  
instruments. For more information, go to

http://bit.ly/3kDn7b

FREE ASTROBIOLOGY LECTURES

Life and the Universe, a free series of six lectures at the University  
of Washington, celebrates the ideas of Galileo and Darwin and takes  
stock of how those ideas fostered the emerging interdisciplinary  
science of astrobiology, which asks fundamental questions about the  
phenomenon of life in a cosmic context.

The lectures will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday evenings,  
beginning Oct. 6, in Kane Hall, Room 120. Speakers will include George  
Coyne, S.J., director emeritus of the Vatican Observatory; NASA  
astrobiologist Chris McKay; and Peter D. Ward, paleontologist and  
author of "Under a Green Sky: Global Warming, the Mass Extinctions of  
the Past, and What They Can Tell Us About Our Future."

To reserve a free ticket, go to

http://depts.washington.edu/astrobio/PubLec_tickets.html

SPACE OUT!(4-12)

"Space Out!" -- an interdisciplinary educator workshop combining  
visual art, science and social studies -- looks at how people looked  
at space travel (real and imagined) before the first manned moon  
landing.

The workshop, presented by the Museum of Flight and the Experience  
Music Project/Science Fiction Museum (EMP/SFM), takes place Oct. 24  
from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m at the EMP/SFM.  Registered educators will  
receive copies of exhibition images for classroom use, audiovisual  
materials and handouts. Clock hours are also available.

For more information, go to

http://www.empsfm.org/calendar/index.asp?m=10&d=24&y=2009&eventID=590&CategoryID=43

BLAST BACK TO SCHOOL (K-12)

Blast Back to School offers educators an easy way to add a little  
space to their classrooms. The page provides quick links to  
educational resources for use in kindergarten through college, as well  
as resources for the informal education community.

http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/blast-back-to-school.html

GALILEAN NIGHTS (K-12)

Galilean Nights —- the International Year of Astronomy's cornerstone  
project -- takes place October 22-24. For three nights, amateur and  
professional astronomers, enthusiasts and the public will take to the  
streets around the globe and point their telescopes to the wonders  
that Italian astronomer Galileo observed 400 years ago.

Galilean Nights focus on objects that Galileo observed, including  
Jupiter and the moon, which will be well-positioned in the night sky  
for observing. The site offers resources to organize events and  
educational material for classroom activities. To learn more, go to

http://www.galileannights.org/index.html

FEEDBACK
Ideas, comments and Web sites of interest to other teachers should be  
sent to Irene Svete, newsletter editor, at

isvete at u.washington.edu


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