Cody Trip touches down on the Island of the Stars

On October 22 and 23, CodyTrip ‐ an innovative online school trip format created by Alessandro Bogliolo from the University of Urbino ‐ touched down on the Island of Stars, La Palma. CodyTrip engages tens of thousands of participants each year in exciting educational experiences that unveil the wonders of various places, cultures, traditions, and knowledge.

More than 40,000 individuals from Italy joined the virtual journey to the volcanic island, renowned for hosting the world's largest optical telescopes. On October 22, during a live session, students delved into astrophysics' marvels and participated in interactive experiments from the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG) dome. With the help of the TNG staff, participants discovered the telescope's optical configuration and movements and witnessed the dome's opening. Through a coding activity, they learned about three-color images and celestial coordinates, and they engaged in numerous questions posed by the CodyTrip team ‐ Alessandro Bogliolo and Adele Pretelli ‐ alongside INAF and TNG staff members Maura Sandri, Fabrizio Villa, and Gloria Andreuzzi. This was all made possible by Active Viewer, a tool developed by DIGIT that allows the audience to interact live with guides and astronomers.

A beautiful sunset awaited students and their families from the dome of the TNG, visible on the other side of the screen. To conclude the first day dedicated to astronomy, a chapter from the book "Astrokids: Avventure e Scoperte nello Spazio" (Scienza Express 2014, L. Daricello and S. Sandrelli) was read to the participants just before the observational night began in the telescope's control room.

After reading about the adventures of Martina Tremenda at the Roque de Los Muchachos, the public, along with the CodyTrip group and the TNG staff, participated in two hours of observations using the DOLORES (Device Optimized for LOw RESolution) in imaging mode. Together, they observed several celestial objects, including the comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, the planetary nebula M27, Stephan's Quintet, the Bubble Nebula, and the Firework Galaxy (NGC6946).

Finally, they observed a region of the sky whose coordinates they had chosen. After a few minutes of waiting, the image of the sky based on the participants' pointing instructions became visible. To their great surprise, they identified a group of stars in the shape of a 'C', leading to the discovery of a new constellation: CodyTrip Constellation!

772 primary and secondary classes and 788 individual participants from 586 cities registered, resulting in 17,038 students participating in the trip alongside their teachers and family members. Over two days, 41,962 individuals took part, connecting through 2,158 different devices. The online activities were conducted live for 657 minutes, with sessions running from 9 AM to 10:30 PM on the first day and from 9 AM to 1:30 PM on the second day.

These initiatives aim to promote knowledge and enthusiasm for science (in particular, astronomy) in schools of all levels and types. CodyTrip is a powerful tool for achieving this aim because it is easily accessible to everyone, without economic or administrative barriers, and can engage thousands of participants simultaneously. It combines digital technology, coding, and creativity to make learning enjoyable and accessible from any device.

CodyTrip to La Palma was organized by Alessandro Bogliolo, DIGIT srl, Giunti Scuola, and INAF, in collaboration with the Fundación Galileo Galile‐ INAF.

Thanks to L. Di Fabrizio, A. Garcia de Gurtubai and M. Gonzalez for the support during the webcast.

Useful links:

• Youtube
• Code Mooc