The first global e-competition on astronomy and astrophysics was held online in September–October 2020 as a replacement for the International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the short time available for organization, 8 weeks, the competition was run successfully, with 325 students from over 42 countries participating with no major issues. The feedback from the participants was positive and reflects the ways in which such events can boost interest in astronomy and astronomy education. With online activities set to become more prevalent in the future, we present an overview of the competition process, the challenges faced, and some of the lessons learned, aiming to contribute to the development of best practices for organizing online competitions.
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See supplementary material online for more results from the survey of the participants; further description of the implementation process; details of the international and local organizing committee, and the academic tasks and evaluation process; a description of the national astronomy competition for the USA, and more examples of international competitions.
© 2023 Author(s). Published under an exclusive license by American Association of Physics Teachers.
2023
Author(s)
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