On January 23, the Santiago Japanese School (with 35 students) held a two-day summer camp in Santiago, Chile. About 20 students in the first to fourth grades set up tents in the schoolyard and enjoyed watching stars on the night of 23 January with NAOJ Chile Observatory staff including Professor Seiji Kameno, Associate Professor Masao Saito, Assistant Professor Masahiro Sugimoto, and Business Manager Kurazo Chiba.

In the dinner time, NAOJ staff gave talks about stars and the universe while having “asado” (barbeque) with children, and after the dinner they also took part in a Kimodameshi (a Japanese version of haunted house) as a ghost trying to frighten children.

Around 10:00 PM, when the night falls, a star watching party began with the guidance of Professor Kameno using two telescopes; one is of the school and another of the lecturer. The targets were Jupiter, the Orion Nebula, and the Pleiades. Children and teachers were excited to see Jupiter with striped patterns on its surface together with Jupiter’s satellites. They also watched, with the naked eye, Canopus, Southern Cross, and Alpha Centauri, which are hard to see in Japan in the northern hemisphere.

The NAOJ Chile Observatory intends to continuously provide educational support for the Santiago Japanese School. [Text and photo provided by Kurazo Chiba]