Education |

Core Objectives

In addition to its core science and technology work to advance our cosmological understanding of the observable universe, the Simons Observatory is committed to increasing the exposure of our science and technology advances through active educational and public engagement programs.

The education and public engagement programs of the Simons Observatory is focused on four key objectives:

Presenting the work of SO scientists and technologists both to thought leaders across the astronomical sciences and the science-interested public.
Coordinating creative events and programs which bring SO work, as well as the field of cosmology in general, to non-scientists around the world.
Provide infrastructure for SO scientists and technologists to advance educational programs and activities that get students of all ages excited about science and careers in science and technology.
Create programs that aid in the training of junior SO scientists and technologists.

Bringing SO to the Public

Simons Observatory scientists are constantly connecting with non-scientists (and not yet scientists!) in many different settings. Through activities like Skype a Scientist, we connect with school-aged children as young as those in kindergarten. Through events like Astronomy on Tap, we connect with adults who are interested in our exciting science. Our Youtube Page has videos where you can meet some of our scientists and learn about various aspects of our work.

Additionally, many of our scientists, such as Professors Brian Keating and Katie Freese, have significant online presences where they discuss the CMB and other cosmological topics. All together our scientists participate in nearly 100 events per year which connect with thousands of non-SOers.

Pictured is Karen Perez Sarmiento talking about the science goals of Simons Observatory during an Astronomy on Tap event in conjunction with our 2024 collaboration meeting in Chicago.

Training Programs

Simons Observatory is dedicated to training the next generation of cosmologists who can help us achieve our ambitious goals. We have programs for students at all levels of their scientific journey which are described below.

Simons-NSBP Scholars Program

The Simons-NSBP Scholars Program is a unique summer research program for undergraduate members of the National Society of Black Physicists (NSBP). Fully-funded by the Simons Foundation, the program started in 2020, and has grown into a multi-faceted experience with projects in areas ranging from experimental cosmology to computational biophysics.

Scholars doing computational projects work at the Flatiron Institute in New York City. Scholars doing experimental projects work in an SO lab at an institution such as the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, NIST, etc. In addition to unparalleled scientific opportunities, participation in the Simons-NSBP Scholars Program brings one into a community of current and past Scholars.

The Simons-NSBP Scholars Program runs annually from the week after Memorial Day to the second week in August.

The application is typically open from December 1st to December 31 for participation in the program the following summer. To find out more information about the program and access the application please visit https://www.simonsfoundation.org/nsbp.

a 2024 Simons-NSBP Scholar, is presenting the results of his summer research project at the Flatiron Institute during the Closing Ceremony of the program

the cohort of 2024 Simons-NSBP Scholars and program organizers — Top image: Donovan Flagg, a 2024 Simons-NSBP Scholar, is presenting the results of his summer research project at the Flatiron Institute during the Closing Ceremony of the program. Bottom image: Pictured is the cohort of 2024 Simons-NSBP Scholars, as well as the program organizers.

CMB Data Schools

CMB Data Schools typically run in conjunction with a major SO event, such as our annual collaboration meetings. To find out more about the next data school, monitor this webpage or email.

Simons Observatory scientists have developed a series of CMB Data Schools which target graduate students getting started in the analysis of CMB data. We have created a series of Jupyter notebooks that give a solid introduction to most areas of contemporary CMB data analysis. During the data schools students work through these notebooks under the guidance of experienced SO scientists.

CMB data school students — Pictured are the attendees of the 2024 CMB Data School that was run in conjunction with the Simons Observatory collaboration meeting at the University of Chicago.

ASO Data Management Pre-doctoral Program

Enabled by the NSF award to fund Advanced Simons Observatory, Simons Observatory has created a new training program for graduate students wishing to learn more about the management and use of data coming from Simons Observatory. Currently the program is only open to US and Chilean graduate students who are already members of the Simons Observatory collaboration, but in the future plan to expand this program.

Mentorship Program

Under the direction of Dr. Sara Simon, the SO Mentorship Program has been providing valuable guidance to our trainees for nearly a decade. In this voluntary program, SO scientists are matched with a more senior collaboration member who can give them any needed advice. The program is specifically designed to maximize the benefits for our training scientists, giving them the best possible chance to make an impact in our field while also meeting their own professional and personal goals.

The success of this program has made it a model for similar programs in places such as the University of Chicago Physics, Dark Energy Survey collaboration, and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab.