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Intrepid Museum’s Astro Live

October 15, 2023 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm

Join space experts as they discuss overcoming barriers to access in astronomy!

Join us live on Facebook, YouTube, or Twitch.TV.

The Intrepid Museum will present a Virtual Astro Live program on October 15 at 3:00pm ET.

A mindset of diverse access makes the experience of learning, working, and collaborating stronger for all. As many disabilities may be invisible or undiagnosed, it’s easy to forget that barriers often exist, both physical and societal, favoring non-disabled or neurotypical people in a vast array of work.

Nowhere is this more true than in the field of astronomy, however, there are a number of working groups that exist to help support and advocate for astronomers with disabilities by identifying barriers to access and information, addressing intersections between ableism, racism, sexism, and others, educating others about disability history within astronomy, and promoting the development and use of cutting-edge access tools and software.

Hear about the important work being done to promote inclusion and equity for astronomers with disabilities and some of the remarkable techniques that have been developed that aid the science community as a whole.

American Sign Language and live captioning will be provided.

The event is hosted and co-produced by John “Das” Galloway, founder of the Kerbal Space Academy.

Participants:

Alicia Aarnio, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of physics and astronomy at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Her research seeks to understand the origins and behavior of young stars’ magnetic fields, including how they impact planet formation and evolution. Aarnio is a co-founder of the American Astronomical Society Working Group on Accessibility and Disability, which seeks to broaden participation in astronomy and astrophysics as well as foster equitable experiences and outcomes for astronomers with disabilities. When not teaching or doing research, she enjoys knitting, gardening, and playing with her dog.

Dr. Kimberly Arcand is a leading expert in astronomy visualization and has been a pioneer in 3D imaging, printing, and extended reality applications with astrophysics data. She has worked for NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory since 1998. Her current research includes sonification of spatial data, machine learning as applied to image processing, and other intersections of emerging technology and astrophysics.

Moderator

Summer Ash has been both a rocket scientist and an astrophysicist. She is a freelance science writer and communicator whose work has been published in The Atlantic, NBC News, Smithsonian, Now.Space, Scientific American, Slate, and Nautilus.

Host

John “Das” Galloway is a science outreach communicator who specializes in live, interactive video content. He is the creator of the Kerbal Space Academy, where he uses video games as a tool to start science and engineering conversations with viewers of all ages, and VECTORS Virtual Field Trips, which brings real-time interactive video to museums, events, and historical locations. “Das” also serves as a host and producer for NASASpaceflight.com.