Astroblast 2006

Report on Astroblast 2006

Astroblast 2006 was held at the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge on a glorious spring day in April. Activities and displays were held in the main IoA building on two floors, in the Sackler Theatre, in the historic telescope domes, the IoA garage and Greenwich House, the former home of the Royal Greenwich Observatory. Thanks are due to all those responsible for making these superb facilities available.

The day was aimed at children, schools and families with the intention of attracting new people to astronomy and space and showing them how much fun and interest they offer. Accordingly, publicity had been targeted towards newcomers, especially schools.

The mobile planetarium was set up on the first floor of Greenwich House in the only area big enough and tall enough to hold it. A modest charge was made for tickets but these sold out very quickly and Andy Green's show proved very popular. We hope that teachers and parents who experienced it will encourage their schools to book a session with Andy and introduce even more children to the wonders of space. I know that the PTA in my village is planning an astronomy event based on the planetarium.

Downstairs in the entrance lobby we had displays from the East Anglian Rocketry Society. This was an eye-opener for many, including myself. I hadn't realised how sophisticated or how powerful some of these rockets are. The rocketeers are a great bunch of people and kept children occuppied building and launching their own rockets.

Budding Slarty Bartfasts were able to make their own planets in the Planet Factory that was set up in the garage and run by volunteers from the IoA. This was very popular and much fun was had by all. Some children enjoyed it so much they produced an entire solar system.

Talks were held throughout the day in the Sackler Theatre. All were aimed at beginners and seemed to go down well. I only managed to get into part of one talk but was lucky enough to see Jon London firing a real rocket motor on the bench. Very loud and very impressive - a great way to bring the subject to life in front of a live audience. Jon also had a display stand which attracted a lot of attention and I gather he expects to visit quite a few schools as a result. Anton Vamplew, the Blue Peter Astronomer, Jeffrey Barham, Carolin Crawford and Alistair Scott gave the other talks.

In the main part of the IoA building there were stands from Green Witch, Cape Instruments, the SPA, Astronomy Now, Sky at Night magazine, David Bryant (meteorites), Herstmonceux Science Centre, the IoA, Jacky Burns (astronomy art), Lighthouse Toys, the BAA, EADS Astrium, Bedford Astronomical Society, Earth and Sky, the Deaf Astronomers Society and Ralph Bell showing how to use a webcam for astronomy. Everyone reported a steady level of interest throughout the day.

Cambridge Astronomical Association ran children's activities in the seminar room and helped children make hundreds of pocket universes. This generated a lot of interest and Brian Lister reported that they had almost double the number of children attend their next young astronomers' meeting. Outside, Bedford Astronomical Society and Green Witch each set up a PST to show the Sun in H-alpha light. The Sun was very obliging, not only did it shine all day but it also had an impressive solar flair that even a casual look could see.

Car parking was arranged at the 'Park and Cycle' immediately across the road so parking was easy and free. When walking from the car park to the IoA entrance the first thing that people saw was a thirty-foot inflatable rocket provided by EADS Astrium. Immediately beyond this they encountered the Star Wars Storm Troopers led by Darth Vader. These guys were around all day helping to create a friendly, party atmosphere and were great fun. They stayed 'in part' all the time they were in costume and were in constant demand for photographs - a smashing group of people.

Refreshments were restricted to cold drinks, filled rolls and snacks, all at low prices. Unfortunately we weren't able to provide hot drinks for visitors on this occasion but realise that this will be required if the event is repeated.

When we organised Astroblast it was very difficult to predict how many people would come along but the numbers turned out to be just about right. Everyone was busy all day long but we weren't overwhelmed. The atmosphere was fantastic and friendly; even the people who had come specifically to see Terry Pratchett didn't seem too disappointed. They accepted that he wasn't able to be there for a very good reason and enjoyed themselves anyway.

Here is a selection of the feedback we've received:

• "Just to say many, many thanks for hosting yesterday's event: we know from our own past experiences just how much work goes into organising something like 'Astroblast': the sure and steady 'touch' of Green Witch was evident throughout what was an enjoyable and faultless day! So once again, thanks for having us! We thoroughly enjoy every opportunity we have to visit the Institute, so yesterday was a bonus!"
• "Just to say that as a networking event it was fantastic. I have made several important contacts, as well as I hope enthused many children and had a pretty good time myself! If you are organising any more events like this I would love to be involved."
• "Astroblast was a fantastically good event from every point of view. The venue was very good and your hospitality and help kept us all going throughout the day. Both the public and the other exhibitors we spoke to said that they would like to attend a future event as would we at BAS of course. Our new Coronado PST that you let us have on the day was trained on the Sun all day to our and the public's delight."
• "Thank you for telling us about Astroblast. My children haven't stopped talking about it for the last week. They're absolutely full of it and want to know when they can go again."
• "Thank you for inviting us to Astroblast. We had a great time and think it was a very successful day. We were impressed by Darth Vader and his storm troopers and wondered if they could come and do a stint at our astronomy festival"