Megan Dubay

Aimed at both in-person and online participants

In addition to the development of the introductory astronomy curriculum Our Place in Space! (OPIS!) at UNC Chapel Hill, a $3M dollar DoD NDEP grant has been awarded for the development and implementation of another survey-level course and integration of several radio telescopes into the Skynet network. OPIS! is currently implemented in over 20 institutions and is funded by the NSF IUSE program for further expansion, including funding for new instructors. This second course, Astrophotography of the Multiwavelength Universe! (MWU!) is designed for students who have used robotic telescopes previously, and it allows for students to explore both optical and radio wavelengths for the exercises. The focus for MWU! is on color- and radio-imaging to explore the solar system, star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies. Students utilize the Skynet system of ~20 fully robotic, professional-grade telescopes around the world, including sites like the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. Students in MWU! can use the telescopes to create astrophotography images that showcase what we can learn from the color. They then use radio observations to examine the object in a different way, such as creating a color and radio image of the Moon—using the optical to learn about lunar mineralogy and the radio to calculate the temperature of the Moon. This workshop will highlight an MWU! exercise that teaches students about our solar system. Participants will walk through a demonstration of the tools used to create a “true color” lunar mosaic as well as radio “images” of the Moon and Jupiter.