GeminiFocus May 2014 | Page 30

Sharing the Wonder at AstroDay Chile! In March, Gemini South’s premier local outreach event, AstroDay Chile, also delivered the wonders of our universe to local students, educators, and the public. The 2014 program was held for the first time at La Serena’s Plaza de Armas and the University of La Serena’s Outreach Center. Over 20 organizations participated, ranging from local observatories to formal education institutions from several Chilean cities in and around the Coquimbo region. As this photo gallery shows, the event offered lots to explore for the nearly 3000 participants who, along with Gemini’s enthusiastic staff (and others), made this the most successful AstroDay Chile ever! Top: Tuerca Loca, a physics teacher from Santiago, Chile, entertains students from San Joaquin school by impersonating Albert Einstein and performing experiments in light diffraction and physics. Center: Last March, local dignitaries and Gemini partners attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for the 8th-annual AstroDay Chile, held for the first time in the University of La Serena’s Plaza de Armas and Outreach Center in downtown, La Serena. Bottom: Throughout AstroDay Chile, long lines formed to look through telescopes at either the Sun and its spots during the day, or craters on the Moon at night. Stargazing continued until the event closed at midnight. 28 GeminiFocus April 2014