At Forum IV,  a MichianaSTEM Collaboration for Education and Research at University of Notre Dame, transits were the feature topic of the ASTRO session.  Caroline Fletcher of South Bend, IN, and Aaron McNeely of Bremen, IN, introduced the overriding theme for 2011 teacher workshops that will specialize in celestial image processing.  Chuck Bueter gave details about the 2012 transit of Venus.

Notre Dame is poised to lead instruction in capturing astronomical images through rooftop telescopes with charge-coupled devices (CCDs)  and then manipulating the digital data to yield valuable images.  The university has a bank of quality telescopes, digital recording equipment, supporting software, and skilled astronomy educators to support the program.  Later in 2011 it expects to install a new 0.8-meter telescope in the observatory atop Jordan Hall of Science.

The proposed ASTRO workshops will guide teachers in photographing celestial highlights like transits of moons around Jupiter, with one of the goals being to prepare a corps of educators who can lead transit of Venus imaging and outreach in 2012.  Dates for the image processing workshops are expected to be announced in March 2011.

Notre Dame has a history of participating in transits of Venus, with observations (or attempts at it) using their Napoleon III telescope dating back to the 1874/1882 pair of transits.   See history/1874-1882/191-notre-dame-transits-of-venus. 

Photos: Educators fill the room (above) during the Forum IV ASTRO session, while Caroline Fletcher (upper right) and Aaron McNeely (lower right) share their enthusiasm for digital imaging of transits.