01 / Contract Profile

80NSSC22M0007 Federal Contract Award

Agency code 8000

THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC (ASP), CO-INVESTIGATORS AT THE SETI INSTITUTE (SI), AND PARTNERS AT THE SPACE SCIENCE INSTITUTE (SSI) PROPOSE ECLIPSE AMBASSADORS PREPARE COMMUNITIES OFF THE PATH FOR TWO SOLAR ECLIPSES, A THREE-YEAR PROJECT TO RECRUIT AND TRAIN 1000 ECLIPSE AMBASSADORS IN 500 COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY, PROVIDING DIRECT PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT EXPERIENCES TO MORE THAN 10,000 PEOPLE IN COMMUNITIES OFF THE PATHS OF TOTALITY FOR THE 2023 AND 2024 ECLIPSES. ECLIPSE PREPARATION AND PUBLIC PROGRAMMING GENERALLY FOCUSES ON VIEWERS ON THE PATHS OF ANNULARITY AND TOTALITY. HOWEVER, THE MAJORITY OF COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE NATION WILL EXPERIENCE THE PARTIAL PHASES, AND WHEN PROPERLY PREPARED AND SUPPORTED, WILL FIND THE EXPERIENCE MEANINGFUL AND MEMORABLE. BECAUSE THIS PROJECT FOCUSES ON BRINGING THE WONDER OF SOLAR ECLIPSES TO UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES, IT ALSO BROADENS PARTICIPATION IN ASTRONOMY AND NASA SCIENCE. OTHER PROJECT PARTNERS WILL BRING THEIR EXPERTISE AND RESOURCES TO THE WORK, INCLUDING LIBRARIES, THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, THE MINORITY UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND EDUCATION PROJECT (MUREP), THE AMERICAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY (AAS) AND THE SOLAR SYSTEM AMBASSADORS. WITH ADVANCE ENGAGEMENT AND TRAINING IN ASTRONOMY AND SAFETY, INVOLVED COMMUNITIES WILL RECEIVE IN-DEPTH LEARNING EXPERIENCES BEFORE AND BETWEEN THE ECLIPSES DESIGNED TO BUILD EXCITEMENT, SPARK CURIOSITY, AND HELP PEOPLE BETTER UNDERSTAND THE EARTH-MOON-SUN RELATIONSHIP. THE PROJECT S EVALUATION WILL STUDY THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE ECLIPSE AMBASSADORS PROJECT HAS ACHIEVED ITS GOALS TO SUCCESSFULLY TRAIN AND SUPPORT ECLIPSE AMBASSADORS TO DELIVER QUALITY PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT TO DIVERSE AUDIENCES, AND WHETHER THE PROJECT HAS ESTABLISHED SUSTAINABLE PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN ASTRONOMY EDUCATORS, COLLEGES, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS LIBRARIES, AND UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES. MEASURES OF SUCCESS WILL BE CONSISTENT WITH SCIACT OBJECTIVES OF INCREASING SCIENCE LITERACY, LEVERAGING PARTNERSHIPS, AND BROADENING PARTICIPATION.