Shaw-IAU Workshops by the OAE

I’ll provide an update on a successful year for Gee-Whiz Astronomy Modelling (GWAM), an online astronomy ‘club’ giving our students, teachers and educators opportunities in astronomical research.
GWAM was founded during the pandemic by Carl Pennypacker (UC Berkeley, GHOU) and Elizabeth Villanueva (University of Chile) developing open-ended astronomy projects for students.
Our team live in Chile, Pakistan, the United States, Colombia and Wales and meet online for an hour each week at a time suitable to all (typically Fridays ~ 18 – 20 UT).
Students collect and analyse astronomical images and datasets (such as Gaia DR3), use astronomical software and Python and also use observing time from Las Cumbres Observatory.
Students study topics such as transiting exoplanets, eclipsing binaries, open clusters and blazars.
Find out more at our website, https://sites.google.com/view/gwamcl

Biography:

Fraser Lewis, based in South Wales, is an educator and researcher with the Faulkes Telescope Project. He creates astronomy resources for teachers and students and researches X-Ray Binaries, especially their behaviour at optical wavelengths.
He was PI on the Erasmus + Project, LaSciL (Large Scientific Infrastructures enriching online and digital Learning) and contributes to the Erasmus + Project, CliC-PoLiT (Climate Action and Light Pollution Threat). CliC-PoLiT examines the effects of climate change and of light pollution.
He works with global astronomy education initiatives including Global Hands On Universe (GHOU; globalhandsonuniverse.org/) and Galileo Teacher Training Program (GTTP; galileoteachers.org/).