An REU Site for Astrophysics at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

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Proposal ID: AST-0243915Institution: Smithsonian Astrophysical ObservatoryPI: Jones, Christine The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) will continue its Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Summer Intern Program at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Ten students will be recruited each year with an emphasis on women, underrepresented minorities, and students from colleges where research opportunities in astronomy are limited. A wide range of research topics will be offered in the following areas: planetary science, supernovae and their remnants, star formation, theoretical studies in astronomy and in atomic and molecular physics, galaxies, clusters of galaxies, large scale structure, active galactic nuclei, laboratory astrophysics, and detector development. Based on their research, each student will write an internal paper and give a presentation at an Intern Symposium. Other activities will include an introduction to current astrophysics through a series of six scientific colloquia and a short lecture course in Cosmology, visits to nearby observatories, social events, and a trip to the winter meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) to present their work. During the ten-week program, interns will live in a Harvard graduate school dormitory. For the first time, the SAO will add a Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program. Each summer, two science teachers from Boston high schools or middle schools will spend two months participating in research and use this experience to develop a new curriculum unit for their classrooms. Each teacher will return for one month during the following summer to update the curriculum unit and prepare a web-based version of the curriculum unit, as well as complete, if necessary, their research projects. The teachers will participate in all REU activities with the undergraduates, and will also present their research at an AAS meeting. ***