The ALFALFA Legacy

UAT Model and Outcomes

The cornerstone of the UAT experience is the annual workshop for undergraduate students and faculty mentors. Participants spend three days learning the fundamentals of astronomy and specific radio astronomy techniques, while working in small groups to explore research questions built from the ongoing primary science projects of the UAT. For the first eight years, the workshop was held in January, onsite at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. Since 2017, the workshop has taken place in June at the Green Bank Observatory (GBO) in West Virginia. GBO is the site of the Green Bank Telescope (GBT), which due to the tragic collapse of the Arecibo Telescope in 2020, serves as the primary facility used by the UAT collaboration to collect research data. These three-day workshops have been structured to: (1) provide background to new students (and faculty), (2) encourage collaborative, active learning via group activities, (3) educate and excite students about radio astronomy, and (4) illustrate the way that a scientific collaboration functions. Throughout the workshop, group activities (“scavenger hunts”) are used in conjunction with lectures to explain and encourage discussion about UAT-related science. Teams present material they have learned – a practice that motivates participation and promotes self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment for students. Each year workshop activities are adjusted according to the evolving focus of the UAT research program and to take advantage of the increasing expertise of faculty. In addition to the general astronomy and UAT-focused lectures presented by UAT faculty and students, professional astronomers (both GBO staff and guests from the broader astrophysics community) give talks to highlight the diverse research pursued at GBO. To provide students with exposure to career options and information about graduate school, UAT faculty and UAT alums (current graduate students and GBO staff) lead a session sharing personal experiences and answering student questions.

Close faculty and peer relationships and networking provide a community for undergraduates that can influence their decision to pursue a STEM-oriented field. The UAT has regularly collected data indicating that students have learned valuable lessons about the way that a science collaboration functions through their interactions with their faculty mentors, their peers, and the leaders of the various science projects of the UAT [Odekon et al. 2015; Troischt et al. 2016]. With a focus on faculty and students at PUIs and other undergraduate-focused institutions, the UAT has extended research opportunities to undergraduates who otherwise would not be able to participate in a large radio astronomy research project.

The collaborative nature of the UAT provides a support structure for faculty at small colleges that maximizes the time that they can devote to the project and develops their research and education skills. Most of the faculty members of the UAT were new to the collaboration and many had expertise in fields outside extragalactic radio astronomy. They have benefited from the opportunity to learn about and participate in the project, bringing their own sets of skills, experience, and expertise to the collaboration. Faculty also have used their involvement in the UAT and ALFALFA to enhance their curricular and public outreach offerings, raising awareness of astronomy on their local campuses and in their local communities. Faculty invite students and members of the public to participate in remote observing sessions, extending access to a national observatory to a wider audience on campus and the public. Educational materials designed to introduce students to the project are publicly available for wider distribution on the UAT and ALFALFA web pages.