July 15-19, 2024
Astronomy can inspire the public like perhaps no other scientific discipline, despite the reliance on difficult concepts, mathematical foundations, and on engineering and technology. It is thus a privileged discipline to inspire STEM/STEAM education.
The San Antonio Teacher Training Astronomy Academy (SATTAA) brings together content experts in astrophysics with educators who are at the forefront of STEM learning. We hope you will find the program, and the community of practice you are joining, to be enriching personally and to enhance your future teaching of astronomy content in your classrooms.
We are delighted to welcome you to SATTAA2024. Thank you for taking time to join us; we can't wait to talk astronomy and astronomy education with you!
Participant Stipends
We are grateful to our friends at B.E.A.T. for sponsoring participant stipends this year.
2024 Team
Antonio Cabrera Lavers, Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC)
Dr. Chris Combs, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Dr. Thayne Currie, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Sergio Fernandez-Acosta, Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC)
Dr. Carmen Fies, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Rachel Fuechsl, McDonald Observatory
Dr. Lindsay Fuller, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Cuauhtémoc Méndez Rosas, Tecnológico de Monterrey (Tec)
Judith Meyer, McDonald Observatory
Atsuko Nita, National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory (NOIRLab)
Dr. Araceli Ortiz, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Dr. Chris Packham, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Martinique Pautzke, McDonald Observatory
Dr. Swara Ravindranath, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Dr. Kurt Retherford, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI)
Cassandra Santillan, Witte Museum
Justine Schaen, National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory (NOIRLab)
Dr. Eric Schlegel, University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
Dr. Harry Shafer, Witte Museum
2024 Schedule
| Date | Time | Activity | Facilitator |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 15 | 9:00 | Meet and Greet; Logistics | Chris Packham & Carmen Fries, UTSA |
| 10:00 | Light, Color, EMS | Lindsay Fuller, UTSA | |
| 11:00 | Europa Clipper | Kurt Retherford, SwRI | |
| 12:00 | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 | Ancient Astronomy in Mexico | Cuauhtémoc Méndez Rosas, Tec | |
| 2:00 | Virtual Fieldtrip: People of the Pecos | Cassandra Santillan & Harry Shafer, Witte Museum | |
| July 16 | 9:00 | Solar System | Chris Packham, UTSA |
| 10:00 | Black Holes | Eric Schlegal, UTSA | |
| 11:00 | Ground-Based Telescopes | Antonio Cabrera Lavers & Sergio Fernandez-Acosta, GTC | |
| 12:00 | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 | Virtual Field Trip: Dark Skies | Judith Meyer, Rachel Fuechsl, & Martinique Pautzke, McDonald Observatory | |
| 2:00 | Virtual Field Trip: Dark Skies | Judith Meyer, Rachel Fuechsl, & Martinique Pautzke, McDonald Observatory | |
| July 17 | 9:00 | Optics | Chris Packham, UTSA |
| 10:00 | Terrestrial Climate Change | Lindsay Fuller, UTSA | |
| 11:00 | Terrestrial Climate Change | Lindsay Fuller, UTSA | |
| 12:00 | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 | NOIRLab's Teen Astronomy Cafe | Justine Schaen, NOIRLab | |
| 2:00 | Q&A | Chris Packham, UTSA | |
| July 18 | 9:00 | Telescope Design | Chris Packham, UTSA |
| 10:00 | Vera C. Rubin Observatory's Online Investigations | Justine Schaen, NOIRLab | |
| 11:00 | Vera C. Rubin Observatory's Online Investigations | Justine Schaen, NOIRLab | |
| 12:00 | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 | Space Telescopes | Swara Ravindranath, NASA | |
| 2:00 | Stars and Star Clusters as Building Blocks of Galaxies | Atsuko Nita, NOIRLab | |
| July 19 | 9:00 | Hypersonics | Chris Combs, UTSA |
| 10:00 | Rockets | Araceli Ortiz, UTSA | |
| 11:00 | Exoplanets | Thayne Currie, UTSA | |
| 12:00 | Lunch | ||
| 1:00 | Eyes on Exoplanets; Planet Search | Thayne Currie, UTSA | |
| 2:00 | Closure and Final Paperwork | Chris Packham & Carmen Fries, UTSA |
2024 Contacts
Dr. Carmen Fies
UTSA College of Education and Human Development
Carmen.Fies@utsa.edu
Dr. Chris Packham
UTSA Department of Physics and Astronomy
Chris.Packham@utsa.edu
