TOPICS OF THE  EAN MEETING - San Giovanni Persiceto - 15 maggio 2010

1) "Terre del Cielo - Worlds of the Sky" project on extra solar transits observation is possible thanks to the established  cooperation for some months, with the Observatories of Brera, INAF, Palermo and with numerous Italian and foreign institutions engaged in research disclosure and astronomy.
Previous experiences in Europe, gained through the project "Extra solar LIVE!" In 2007-2008 and the current one in place, showed that at least in the great part of the research on extra solar planets transits, is possible to  program the outreach activities, teaching and research of considerable interest not only nationally but also and especially at international levels.
The project has mobilized the attention of a large audience, consisting of astronomy, students and teachers from all over Europe (but also from the USA, Latin America, etc..)  They watched videos on You tube in Italian, English and Chinese, made by observers of Brera, Palermo and EAN to publicize the event.
We Should also remember the thousands of visits occurred at the site www.crabnebula.it  several days before the proposed dates for public viewing live on internet by Merate and EAN astronomers. Another effort has been made by some astronomers and experts in the Brera software (including, Stefano Covino and Paolo D'Avanzo) who prepared a database that can accommodate all the information about past and future extra solar transits (images, curves light, text files, etc.)..
 

2)  Astronomy video course, introduced by Angelo Angeletti. Suggestions for video. The idea is structured in three thematic areas:

a) Planetary and Observatories  management

b) General astronomy elements

c) Programs and research techniques to advanced amateurs

• Each topic will be developed in 10 video lessons 1h 30m each (indicatively , 15 hours for each topic, during the entire 45 hours)

• Teachers will be thirty experts from among the most experienced and amateur astronomers in the individual areas covered by the course

• We are identifying 30 subjects covered in the lectures. Each lesson must have a documentary style. The speakers have to agree  with us the lesson plot (Angelo Angeletti will prepare a reference on the observation of extra solar transits, as a model), and then they can realize it just using a normal camera.

• The course should be distributed by mid-2011.

• We are studying the possibility to distribute  the course on DVD or on the web with a small fee request.

• We are also exploring the possibility to issue a certificate after examination; by videoconference.

3) Astronomical research with highly automated acquisition systems

Topic discussion on the possibility to network a large number of telescopes, from north Italy to south, managed with the software RICERCA. The aim is  to connect dozens of instruments. We analyze the areas of research that can be afford by this instrumental configuration.

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4) The creation of a web Astronomical cast news  

We’ll discuss plans for weekly astronomical news on the web, with a journalistic style, to make announcements of interest at both national and European level. News and any movies will be provided by the users, at professional or amateur conferences, Star Party, extreme events observations, Messier Marathon, etc.. The information will come from the web, from associations, from individuals and observers (both amateur and professional).