Web of Stars

  • Star Gazing

    Seeing the Night Sky by Day

    CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork offers schools the opportunity to take part in a unique educational project that involves a direct link to astronomers at Chabot Space & Science Center, CA, USA. Web of Stars engages students in a captivating astronomy lesson that takes advantage of the eight-hour time difference between Cork and the San Francisco Bay Area. Students take part in a live video link where astronomers at Chabot involve students in night sky observations, the capturing of real-time astronomical images and a discussion based on the information held in these images. The workshops are DPS certified.

    Some of the schools that have taken part to date include:

    • North Presentation School, Cork
    • Kinsale Community School
    • Deerpark CBS, Cork
    • Gaelscoil Mhachan
    • Presentation Secondary School Michelstown, Cork

    More Information

    Blackrock Castle Observatory »
    Chabot Space & Science Center »
    QUEST Community Science Blog »


    Teachers Astronomy Workshop – Using Web of Stars in the Classroom, 11th November 2010

    Web of Stars is a computer based classroom workshop, using free offline software (Stellarium and Salsa J) to enable students to survey the sky and then produce their own astronomy images from real image data acquired from observatories. Designed for all ages of second level student, Web of Stars has proven very popular with TY students.

    Blackrock Castle Observatory in association with ESERO Ireland, Cork City Council and CIT are delighted to announce a unique hands-on workshop for teachers to engage with astronomers at the Chabot Space & Science Center, (CSSC) in California on Thursday, 11th November via a live link at CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory.

    The exercise will involve teachers using Stellarium and Salsa J programmes and personally engaging with expert astronomers at BCO and CSSC in the delivery of the teachers own astronomy images. A working manual for Stellarium and Salsa J for use in the classroom will be available to teachers. The manual, also available as a download, will present step by step advice in bringing students on a cosmic journey.

    On completion of this workshop teachers will be able to apply active learning techniques with their students.

    Research into how people learn has shown that active learning is the best way to create true engagement of students in a subject, and has also been shown to lead to better understanding and retention of material than traditional lecture-style instruction. The activity is designed to promote such active learning by giving student real astronomical data, and the tools to analyse it simply and easily in their own classroom.

    The teachers astronomy workshop takes place from 10am to 12 noon on 11th November at Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork (travel expenses and lunch are provided).

    Limited availability, booking information below.
    Email: info@bco.ie
    Phone: 021 4357917
    Web: bco.ie/webofstars


    Chabot Space & Science Center by night, with a crew of scientists outside, showing off some big telescopes

    Web of Stars Live Link

    Originally conceived at CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork as a twinning project with the San Francisco Bay area, Web of Stars now stands alone as an astro-imaging workshop. The initial pilot run of 6 live sessions with astronomers at Chabot Space & Science Center (CSSC) allowed for literally live data to be processed to final image.

    ‘Last year, after hearing about our visit to BCO and our participation in the video link up with Chabot Space & Science Centre at Blackrock, the intake of transition year physics students at Regina Mundi College doubled!’
      –  John Murphy Physics Teacher, Regina Mundi College, Cork

    Students at the school now have a 70 member strong astronomy club and website, mundiastronomy.ie

    Resources used are easy to obtain: Stellarium and SalsaJ and support material for these is available from Blackrock Castle Observatory, EU-HOU (EU Hands on Universe) and Faulkes Telescope Project.

    Completion of a Web of Stars workshop can open the opportunity to participate in the add-on live link with Chabot Space & Science Center, which for National Science Week 2010 is made available to second level teachers.


    Upcoming Web of Stars Events


    21st October 10:30am – 12pm

    Web of Stars, live session at Blackrock Castle Observatory with Chabot Space & Science Center. Transition year students from the Ursulines, Cork.


    5th November 8pm – 9pm

    First Fridays at the Castle (monthly open night)

    Celebrate the exhibit launch of Web of Stars, a remote telescope imaging project for schools at Blackrock Castle Observatory. Meet astronomer Ben Burress live on a web link from the Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland, California. Learn about CSSC’s magnificent telescopes and view the collection of astrophotographs taken with these instruments by Cork students. Ben launches the image exhibit from the Web of Stars project.


    11th November 10:30am – 12pm

    Web of Stars, live session at Blackrock Castle Observatory with Chabot Space & Science Center. To coincide with Our Place in Space National Science Week 2010 the monthly live Web of Stars will take place during Science Week. Featuring on Cork’s 96FM with the Street Fleet.


    For more information, contact Clair McSweeney, Facilities Manager, Blackrock Castle Observatory.
    Phone: 0214357917
    Email: clairmcsweeney@bco.ie