2. Radboud University
  3. Help us inspire children in Namibia!

Help us inspire children in Namibia!

from €25,000 (37%)
0 companies
0 fundraisers
0 teams
126 donations

If it were up to the astronomers at Radboud University, Namibia will be part of leading astronomy research in just a few years’ time. The Africa Millimetre Telescope that they plan to build there will be part of the telescope network that published the very first picture of a black hole in April 2019. To inspire a future generation of Namibian scientists and engineers to be part of this, Radboud University would like to take a mobile planetarium to Namibia. The infrastructure and expertise are already there; now we need the planetarium, and that is where you come in.

Inspire

How can you inspire people to take an interest in the stars? Well, it’s quite simple: by taking the stars to the people, starting with the children. In the mobile planetarium, we can take schoolchildren and students on a fascinating journey through the universe, introducing them to incredible phenomena and challenging them to broaden their horizons. This is a tried and tested approach that has been successful not just in the Netherlands, but also during a brief pilot in Namibia.

Mobile planetarium

The mobile planetarium is an inflatable dome inside which interactive films of the stars and the wonders of the universe are projected onto its surface. It is ideal for use both in primary and secondary schools, as these projections can be adapted to the age and the interests of the viewer. The dome is large enough for a whole class, has its own generator, and is suitable for any location.

 

Visit every school in five years

Jaap Vreeling, the man behind the mobile planetarium programme in the Netherlands, is ready to visit schools together with local partners. The ambitious aim is to visit every school in Namibia in five years. The planetarium will visit each school for one week, and every pupil and teacher in the school will take part in the journey through the universe. Teachers will also be given a training programme so that they can continue to inspire their classes for the rest of the year. This will hugely increase the programme’s impact.

You have a part to play

Help us to bring this mobile planetarium to thousands of Namibian children, to inspire pupils and students and to broaden their horizon. We need € 25,000 to purchase the mobile planetarium. All contributions are welcome, and together we can do this. Thank you for your support!

Partners

One of our project partners is NOVA, the Netherlands Research School for Astronomy, which has a lot of experience in bringing mobile planetaria to schools in the Netherlands. In Namibia, our partners are the University of Namibia, which will provide local expertise, and the Rössing Foundation, which has over 40 years of experience with educational support and over five years of experience with a mobile laboratory that supports English, mathematics and the natural sciences.

COVID Update January 2022

We continue our efforts to inspire children in Namibia. All donations we received from July 2021 untill January 2022 will remain earmarked for UNAM COVID-help.

More information

For more information about black holes, the Africa Millimetre Telescope and the education and outreach programme of which the mobile planetarium is a part, please go to www.ru.nl/amt or read the following articles at Radboud Recharge:

Astronomers capture first image of a black hole

Telescopes in space for even sharper images black holes

The rising star of Sara Issaoun

 

Choose an amount
€10 Donate Thank you! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project, the schools visited and the reactions of children and teachers. 23 donors €25 Donate Thank you! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project, the schools visited and the reactions of children and teachers. 35 donors €50 Donate Invitation for a lecture! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project and an invitation to attend a lecture by one of our astronomers at Radboud University. 26 donors €100 Donate Invitation for a lecture! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project and an invitation to attend a lecture by one of our astronomers at Radboud University. 16 donors €250 Donate Visit the mobile planetarium in Nijmegen! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project and an invitation to visit the mobile planetarium in Nijmegen. 2 donors €500 Donate Visit the mobile planetarium in Nijmegen! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project and an invitation to visit the mobile planetarium in Nijmegen. 2 donors €1,000 Donate Your name on the planetarium! - You will receive regular newsletters about the project, an invitation to visit the mobile planetarium in Nijmegen and your name will be displayed on the planetarium. Other Amount Other  - I want to choose my own amount
View all

Africa Millimetre Telescope planetarium team receive Royal Astronomical Society Medal for outreach

 22-02-2024 | 15:18 The mobile planetarium team of the Africa Millimetre Telescope project is honoured by the UK’s Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) with the 2024 Annie Maunder Medal for Outreach. The mobile planetarium is used to bring immersive and interactive astronomy engagement to a diverse spectrum of the Namibian public and help to bridge the gap between scientists and the public as well as top-level government. For these reasons the medal was awarded to the internationally operated project. The RAS commends the innovative nature and potential of the project: “In spite of magnificent night skies, the wider public in Namibia has little knowledge or appreciation of the astronomical research done in their country. This means that the potential of astronomy to inspire and stimulate interest in “blue skies research” is being missed. The mobile planetarium project of the Africa Millimetre Telescope (AMT) is helping to realise this potential by bringing an immersive astronomical experience to schools across Namibia.”
Read more