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AAS - 2012

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 2011 and 2012 NITARP teams attended the 2012 January AAS meeting in Austin, TX. The 2011 class was presenting results and the 2012 class was starting up. We sent about 60 people to the AAS (the largest delegation to date) and had a grand time. Please see the special article on NITARP at the AAS. We also got a smattering of coverage in local media outlets.

Quotes

  • When asked about their future plans, I heard each student describe their college hopes and their plans seemed bigger and more full of promise than I had heard in the past. I believe having the attention of such a distinguished audience raised their expectations of themselves.
  • I think that the most surprising thing about it was how young everyone was! I absolutely did not expect that, maybe because the amateur community is so much older by comparison, and is mainly composed of retired people.
  • While working on our [project] it didn't seem as though we were part of a larger connection, but after coming here it feels like a group effort.
  • During this meeting, I really got to see science up close. Everyone here was on the [outer edges] of astronomy, carving the path for humans in space. I saw how science was conducted and because I took part in this conference and contributed to the new information gathered, I feel like I am a part of something more.
  • What surprised me the most was the great sense of pride I felt when I listened to my students work with the other students in the BRC team. They completed each other's sentences. They interceded when others faltered. Wow. What a fabulously cooperative group.

Related Teams

AAS - 2012