– Apurva Jakhadi
NASA-Space Educator & Member-U.N. World Space Week Association (WSWA), USA
World Space Week is a volunteer-based series of worldwide events, held each year between 4 and 10 October, to celebrate the benefits of space for humanity. World Space Week is the largest public space event in the world.
The United Nations General Assembly declared World Space Week in 1999. The celebration of World Space Week is under the guidance of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) and the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) based in Vienna, Austria.
Mission :
World Space Week Association (WSWA), founded in 1981, is one of the world’s oldest space education organizations. Today it is the proud partner of the United Nations in the global coordination of World Space Week. WSWA supports a worldwide network of coordinators and participants. This non-government, nonprofit, international organization is based in the United States.
Celebration at Nashik :
India is among the first 5 leading countries to host and conduct the UN-World Space Week activities.
Every year, this week is observed and celebrated in the city with great enthusiasm and zeal, especially among the astro-lovers and space enthusiasts.
Nashik Municipal Corporation’s Yashwantrao Chavan Planetarium (Tarangan), Kalpana Youth Foundation (KYF), Astro-Club of K.K. Wagh Engineering College (KKWIEER) and Ashoka Universal School Astronomical
Observatory (AUSAO) Club, celebrating this event from today – 4th to 10th October. During this week, to spread awareness about space science, we generally conduct various Space-related
Public outreach events including :
Space quiz, paper presentation competition on space-related topics, with a focus will be on the UN-WSW theme, poster competition, essay Competition, online guest lectures by renowned speakers from global space agencies, skygazing and observation events, space rally, etc.
In the past years, this event has been conducted on a large scale at Nashik’s Tarangan; and, there has been overwhelming response. However, this year, due to the prevailing global pandemic situation, WSW 2020 will be conducted online, on digital platform.
The aim is to reach out to maximum students and spread the global message of the UN-World Space Week program; that is, “to internationally celebrate the contributions of Space Science and technology and it’s applications, to the betterment of
human condition in the society”.
Our objective is to spread and popularize space science awareness among common man; and particularly, hto cultivate keen interest and inculcate the spirit of science among students by conducting these events annually.
My Comments :
World Space Week is the largest annual public space event in the world.
The theme of World Space Week 2020 is :
“Satellites improve life”, rightly chosen by the United Nations. This year, the world witnessed many natural disasters particularly at times of floods or during massive forest fires across continents which destroyed life and large flora and fauna. The Earth Observation Satellites can be extensively used to capture high resolution images and more importantly to give early warning signals which can save life.
Moreover, Geographic Information System (GIS) or Land Information System(LIS) and Remote sensing are incredibly useful and effective tools in disaster management and mitigation since they can be used effectively for quickly assessing severity and impact of damage due to earthquakes, landslides, flooding, cyclones and forest fires.
In our day-to-day life, satellites play a significant role in weather forecasting, communication and navigation.
Also, the military satellites used for defense applications are extremely vital, as they help to protect our national boundaries from enemy attacks. Thanks to satellite data, now-a-days our farmers can maximize the use of their land and increase their crop yield, which in turn, benefits the nation and boosts our economy.
Monitoring and protecting our ecosystems from space, is yet another important satellite application. Satellite imagery is used to monitor and protect our environment, manage our resources, ensure our safety; which supports global efforts for sustainable development.
Satellite applications are numerous and they definitely improve our life. Therefore, I feel that this is the most appropriate theme with an apt message given by the United Nations to citizens of the world.
