Planetarium of Pará participates in the XV Enpec with a session by visual artist Rafael RG

The Center for Science and Planetarium of Pará (CCPPA), linked to the State University of Pará (Uepa), will be part of the program for the XV National Meeting of Research in Science Education (Enpec), which will be held for the first time in the Northern Region, from August 4 to 8, at the Federal University of Pará (UFPA). The activity at the Planetarium will take place next Wednesday (6) at 8:30 AM, exclusively for participants of the XV Enpec. The experience "When Night Falls, I Will Be Guided by the Light of Your Eyes" developed by visual artist and writer Rafael RG will be presented in the Kwarahy projection dome.

The special dome session with Rafael RG will also be part of the public visitation program at the Planetarium, on Wednesday (6) at 5 PM (free entry); and on Saturday (9) at 11 AM (ticket price R$ 10.00 and half-price R$ 5.00).

The experience combines art, science, and history, based on the investigation of escape routes of enslaved Black people in Brazil and the astronomical knowledge present in these paths. The initiative was developed from the collection of dates and locations, which can determine what the sky looked like on a specific night. Escape announcements from the colonial period in Pará are crossed with astronomical data, allowing the identification of the stars and constellations that guided journeys of resistance.

According to Rafael RG, participating in Enpec with the session is a way to return to the Amazon territory a history that belongs to it. "‘When Night Falls, I Will Be Guided by the Light of Your Eyes’ evokes Black escapes through the forest, the paths traced under the light of the stars. Sharing this with researchers in science and education, in a city like Belém, where the rivers still whisper these memories, is a way to create bridges between different forms of knowledge," he emphasizes.

After the sessions on Wednesday, the 6th, there will be a debate with the presence of Rafael RG and the professor from the Institute of Physics at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Alan Alves Brito. The professor was an Astronomy consultant for the session and contributed to the reading of four celestial charts. "Bringing this planetarium session to Enpec in Belém is like navigating the confluences between art, science, and education. The proposal suggests listening to the sky and the rivers of the Amazon, based on the stories of resistance of Black people. Doing this in the city of the igarapés, in front of a community that thinks about education and knowledge in its multiple forms, makes the experience even more significant," says Alan Brito.

Building Dialogues - According to the general coordinator of the XV Enpec, Silvia Chaves, presenting the project at the Planetarium "is a unique opportunity to value these meetings of plural knowledge, offering the public an immersive experience that articulates historical narratives, Black memories, and astronomy."

According to the professor, carrying out the activity collaboratively highlights the commitment of the institutions to building interdisciplinary dialogues. "The partnership between UFPA and Uepa in this session further reinforces the importance of these bridges we are seeking to build," points out Silvia Chaves, who is a full professor at UFPA and executive secretary of the Brazilian Association for Research in Science Education (Abrapec).

The director of CCPPA, professor José Roberto Silva, enthusiastically highlights the fact that the Planetarium of Pará will host one of the activities of the XV Enpec. "It is with great satisfaction that the Center for Science and Planetarium of Pará - which has the mission of disseminating scientific knowledge - will integrate the activities of Enpec, a partnership that will allow participants of the event to learn about our activities in Astronomy, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics. We emphasize that the main point of the activity will be the dome session, presented by visual artist Rafael RG, with the presence of professor Alan Brito. In this sense, CCPPA is honored to provide its space to host one of the activities of this important national event in the field of science," he concludes.

Service

Session "When Night Falls, I Will Be Guided by the Light of Your Eyes"

For participants of the XV Enpec: Wednesday, August 6, at 8:30 AM;

For the general public: Wednesday, August 6, at 5 PM (free entry); and Saturday, August 9, at 11 AM (ticket price R$ 10.00 and half-price R$ 5.00).