Iran celebrated the 19th World Space Week (October 4-10) holding programs including night sky observing along with several other scientific events.
The celebrations were aimed at raising awareness about space sciences among school children and teenagers, CITNA news website reported.
During the WSW, the Iranian Space Agency and National Organization for Development of Exceptional Talents (NODET) agreed to jointly produce educational material related to space sciences.
ISA director Mohammad Jafar Mohammadi says, “Space science courses will be offered to 130,000 students studying at 700 NODET schools across the country.”
The same courses are to be offered in other schools in the near future.
A variety of events were held in several provinces to mark the space week.
The events commemorated international contributions to space science and technology as well as how exploring the cosmos has impacted humanity, within a theme of “Space Unites the World”. This year the theme focused on how space brings people together from across continents, according to the World Space Week organization.
“In addition to night sky observing sessions, photography, painting and essay writing contests were held during the WSW in Iran to promote space sciences,” Mohammadi noted.
Sponsors from academic centers, scientific associations, state-run organizations, and NGOs contributed to the ongoing celebrations.
First declared by the United Nations General Assembly in 1999, the World Space Week honors two seminal events in space exploration: The launching of the first satellite, Sputnik 1, on Oct. 4, 1957, and the signing of the Outer Space Treaty on Oct. 10, 1967, which forms the basis for international space law.
Since then, it has grown to be the largest space celebration on Earth.
