Journey Through the Universe:
Hawai‘i 2019
The 15th year of Journey Through the Universe,
Gemini Observatory’s flagship education
and outreach program, brought astronomy
professionals from Maunakea and across the
nation into Hawai’i island classrooms, visit-
ing thousands of students — one classroom
at a time. The diverse group of astronomers,
scientists, engineers, and informal educators
provided an authentic and personal window
into the process of scientific discovery and the
splendors of our Universe.
Figure 5. Hilo-Waiākea and Ka’ū-Kea’au-Pāhoa Complex Area
Superintendent Chad Farias speaks about the success of Journey in the
community and its future.
Credit (all Journey photos): Joy Pollard
During Journey “week,” which began on March
2nd, 80 astronomy educators shared their pas-
sion for science with approximately 8,000 stu-
dents. Journey as a year-round program also
includes StarLab Portable Planetarium shows
for grades K-1, career panel presentations for
high schoolers, astronomy educator work-
shops, Lunar and Meteorite Sample Certifica-
tion workshops hosted by NASA’s Solar System
Exploration Research Virtual Institute team,
Family Science Night, and a public presenta-
tion on recent discoveries from the telescopes
on Maunakea.
Updates on what Journey is accomplishing in
the community can be viewed here. Figure 6. Two students learn about robotics provided by the Hawai'i
Science and Technology Museum at Journey's Family Science Night.
Alyssa Grace is an Outreach Assistant at Gemini
North. She can be reached at:
[email protected] Figure 7. Science Operations Specialist, Jocelyn Ferrara (far left) uses an
8-meter tarp in the classroom to model the size of the primary mirror in the
twin Gemini telescopes.
April 2019
GeminiFocus
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