• NASA
  • IPAC

AAS - 2020

The Winter American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting is the largest meeting of professional astronomers in the world. NITARP educators attend an AAS first to meet their team, then they go home and work remotely for much of the year, and then attend an AAS to present their results.  At any given AAS, then, we could have two NITARP classes attending - those finishing up, and those getting started. Reload to see a different set of quotes.

The 2019 and 2020 NITARP teams attended the 2020 January AAS meeting in Honolulu, HI. The 2019 class was presenting results and the 2020 class was starting up. We had alumni raise money to come back as well. We sent about 50 people to the AAS and had a grand time. Please see the special article on NITARP at the AAS. All of the posters we presented are here:

2019 Teams:

NITARP Management:

Returning Alumni Teams:

Quotes

  • [student:] I think the most interesting thing was to see the number of females within the astronomy community as it feels as though women go underrepresented in many science fields. I did not anticipate as many women to be at IPAC or at AAS and I enjoyed seeing that.
  • [student: Now,] I feel inspired to work harder and to push myself farther not only in school but throughout my career as well. I also learned that there are many similarities between astronomy and electrical technology. Understanding the data transferred into applications I am learning in the electrical field. Interesting! The sky is no longer the limit.
  • As an educator, at times it can feel like you are isolated or on your own. I knew that NITARP is a team but for once I felt like I was part of something bigger than just me. I know now the true meaning of teamwork especially as it relates to science research. I am very proud to be considered a part of [our] team. I knew that there would be teamwork but I did not anticipate how cohesively we would come together. This was truly a very rewarding experience.
  • [student:] The experience will help me with moments where I feel over my head. Previous to NITARP, if there was a moment in class, I really just had no idea what was going on, I would give up, stop paying attention, and just vow to pick up the information from the start another time. I learned through our initial virtual meetings that just does not work very well. Efficient notetaking, even when I don’t really understand what’s being said is a skill I’ll take with me for a long time.
  • [student:] I think this will change the way I take in information and take notes in the classroom. I know now that even if things go over my head immediately I can come back and understand them better if I put in time and effort. I also realized the importance of taking notes not only on what I am learning but also writing down any questions I have so that I can ask them later and improve my understanding.

Related Teams

AAS - 2020