European Association for Astronomy Education

Due to the requests of teachers all around Europe, the deadline for the submission of Catch a Star's works has been postponed to December 20th, 2016.

Teachers say that they have done the work with their students but in many cases have not been able to finish the translation of their work to English.

Since December 16th is the end of first term in many European countries EAAE has decided to extend the contest submissions deadline until December 20th. This will give students an opportunity to finish their works. It will also be an opportunity for more teachers to apply with works of their students.

Winners of the 2015-2016 Odysseus space science contest have travelled to French Guiana to observe the successful launch of an Ariane 5 rocket. The trip is just part of their reward for earning top honours at the Odysseus international finals in July. Equally exciting opportunities await young Europeans in the 2016-2017 contest cycle.

Witnessing a rocket launch at the spaceport in French Guiana was an extraordinary experience for the Odysseus prizewinners. “It was amazing just to watch the transfer of the rocket to the launch pad”, says Alice Antonelli from Italy. She won first place in the Explorers category of competition for university undergraduates. For Nelson Rebelo the trip was nothing less than “a dream come true”. Nelson was part of the three-member team of high-school students from Portugal who submitted the most convincing project in the Pioneers category. Next year too, first-prize winners in both categories can look forward to visiting Europe’s spaceport in South America and to earning coveted internships in the space sector.

Alice Antonelli, who won the first place in the Explorers Category of the 2016 Odysseus Contest, in parallel with her studies on Aerospace Engineering at the University of Pisa is actively mobilizing young pupils’ and students’ interest on space science. Alice who is European Youth Space Ambassador for 2016-2017 has been already invited by schools in Tuscany and in Rome to share her experiences from the contest and to talk to students about space science challenges.