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The wavelength spectra that a star emits can give us an approximation of some of the most important information that we need from stars – their temperature and their luminosity. Max Planck’s famous radiation law and subsequent equations derived from it describe the relationship between the temperature of an object and the electromagnetic radiation it emits.

The Crab nebula has spectacular colors due to being the remanent of a massive supernova explosion. Supernovas can vary widely between explosion energy and expansion rate. From relatively mundane explosions that expand at 9,000 miles per second to violent explosions that expand at a blistering 25,000 miles a second. University of Nevada, Reno students used the Great Basin Observatory to image the Crab nebula and made estimates on the energetics of the supernova.

Great Basin National Park Foundation, working with Great Basin National Park and Great Basin Observatory scientists, has released science teaching materials specially designed for the COVID-19 learning environment. Six new lessons for 5th-grade students teach about stars, our solar system, gravity, national parks, and light pollution. The resources contain on and off-screen activities, all of which can be done in a classroom or home environment and afford social distancing.

The Summer Research Institute is a 38-year old tradition in the Chemical Physics Laboratory at Concordia University. "I was not about to abandon that tradition because of COVID-19", remarked the leader of the institute, Professor John Kenney. This summer the institute pivoted to be online and used the remote, robotic GBO for an astronomical research component.