In April 2025, we launched a new astronomy lab in the Department of Mathematical Engineering at Musashino University for students strong in mathematics but new to astrophysics. We introduced hands-on training at two facilities: Ibaraki University's Hitachi and Takahagi 32 m telescopes, where students learn intensity calibration and measure atmospheric opacity, and NAOJ's Nobeyama 45 m telescope, where they plan and run mapping observations. We present the curriculum design, examples of student work, and lessons learned from running this program inside a mathematics department.

Biography:

Aya Higuchi is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Musashino University, where she founded a new astronomy laboratory in 2025. She is an observational radio astronomer studying star and planetary system formation, with prior research experience at the Joint ALMA Observatory in Chile and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, and she previously built an observational astronomy research group at Tokyo Denki University. At Musashino University, she now leads a curriculum that pairs hands-on radio astronomy observation with mathematical modeling.