Astrology vs. astronomy

I was listening to the radio after work this week – they have a regular astrologer on the programme. That’s right – astrologer, not astronomer. Before I managed to change the station, I heard the astrologer say that there was a new Moon, and you can’t see a new Moon because the Sun obscures it. I think that she may have started trying to explain it without really knowing the answer, which I am sure we have all been guilty of, at one time or another.

If you were to ask an astronomer the same question, you would (hopefully) get a different answer. It’s encouraging to see that in the draft primary curriculum, students will still be learning about the phases of the Moon and the solar system at this early stage. There’s a good animation on the National STEM Centre eLibrary, which would hopefully dispel the astrologer’s misconception http://stem.org.uk/rx7aq

Today I watched this item about the Astronomy Photographer of the Year, 2012.

Looking at these amazing pictures, you can understand why ancient (and modern) civilisations tried to use the stars to tell them something about their lives. As teachers, I hope we can use these kinds of images to create more astronomers than astrologers, and to use space to inspire students to study and think critically about the world (and universe) around them.

Tom Lyons, ESERO-UK Teacher Fellow


The network of Science Learning centres, in conjunction with RCUK (Research Councils UK) are running a range of astrophysics courses for GCSE across the country.