"city skies: linking neighborhoods with NASA through urban astronomy" will use observing astronomical objects in day and night skies to stimulate interest in NASA's online educational resources to…

"city skies: linking neighborhoods with NASA through urban astronomy" will use observing astronomical objects in day and night skies to stimulate interest in NASA's online educational resources to help residents of urban neighborhoods better understand how much there is to see and do under a city sky. In this four-year project, the franklin institute will develop a city-wide astronomical observing program that engages 30 community-based organizations in neighborhoods across philadelphia, and all school district of philadelphia middle schools. Many years of anecdotal observations and comments from our visitors reveal widely held but erroneous beliefs that astronomical observing cannot be done in urban areas because of city lights at night, and that no astronomical observations of any quality can be undertaken without a telescope. As a result, thousands of people miss out on opportunities to directly and easily observe bright STARS and the planets of our solar system. Unfortunately, children living in urban areas are less inclined to engage in astronomical observing, and generally have little direct leaming experience in observational astronomy. Many are also unaware of NASA's online resources that could be used in classrooms, after-school and community organization programs. This project seeks to use positive night sky observing experiences and the resources of NASA's websites to promote stem education and career paths to young people and adults in philadelphia's neighborhoods. City skies is guided by these objectives: 1. Create multiple opportunities for inner-city children, adults and families to observe and learn about the solar system through neighborhood and city-wide events. 2. Equip community-based organizations with the knowledge, skills and materials they need to make space science a sustained part of educational programming for their constituents. 3. Stimulate interest and engagement in NASA's missions and resources among residents of traditionally under-served, inner-city neighborhoods. 4. Create and strengthen collaborative ties between the franklin institute, community-based organizations, city residents, and local amateur astronomers. The project will provide a traveling astronomy assembly program to philadelphia middle schools and community-based organizations, a sunspotter solar telescope and galileoscope telescope kits for 30 community-based organization, astronomy workshops at the franklin institute to prepare facilitators from community-based organizations to use their new astronomical instruments to host hands-on, educational programs for their communities, and sunspotter teacher professional development workshops for up to 20 philadelphia middle school teachers each year. By the end of the project, up to 1540 families in inner-city, underserved neighborhoods will have benefited from city skies programming; 770 galileoscope telescopes and tripods, plus astronomy library resources, will have been distributed to 30 community-based organizations; a traveling astronomy program from the franklin institute will have visited every public middle school in philadelphia, and BO philadelphia middle school teachers will have received sunspotter training and a telescope for their school.