Statement of Purpose

My voyage into the realm of Astronomy Club commenced during Technex'22, where I
immersed myself in the Astro-Quiz and Scientist of Utopia events, leaving me awe-inspired
by the wonders unveiled by the Astronomy Club. Since that momentous day, I have
wholeheartedly embraced my role as an active member of the Astro Club, not only
contributing to its endeavours but also delving into the captivating frontiers of the cosmos.

From my first year I have been participating in club events and contributed to the Astronomy
Club which are mentioned below in detail:

 Participated in workshop on Spaceflight Simulator, and Stellarium about night sky

mapping and basics of rocket building and satellite docking.
 Technex’22: Participated in Astro-Quiz and Scientist of Utopia event.
 Participated in Space flight simulator workshop.
 Summer Camp: It was related to solar activity and following events which was
inspired from last year’s Inter IIT Tech Meet problem statement.
 IAAC’22: Participated in International Astronomy and Astrophysics competition and
was selected for round 2 of the competition among participants across the world.
 Astropedia’22: Participated in Astropedia series organised by our club including
guest speakers as well centred around radio astronomy.
 NSSC’22: Participated in Case Study competition representing Astro Club IIT (BHU)
and stood first among all participants organised by IIT KGP.
 Tryst’23: Participated in Case Study competition representing Astro Club IIT (BHU)
and stood first among all participants organised by IITD.
 Participated in offline observation session and stargazing.
 Orientation’22: Conducted orientation session for fresher explain about various
activities at Club and its projects.
 Workshop: Conducted workshop on evolution of Universe where we had explained
from formation to till date cosmic nature of the universe.
 Facilitated observation and telescope handling session for freshers.
 Aditya L1 Workshop: Contributed in facilitating talk on "Variability of Nearest Star
and Aditya-L1 Mission" by Prof. Dipankar Banerjee, Director, ARIES, Nainital. The
workshop and event are supported by Aditya Support Cell, ARIES, ISRO, and IIT
(BHU).
 Was involved in tracking and observing “Green Comment” for couple of nights with
my fellow members and seniors of the club which was visible in north sky earlier this
year.
 Technex’23: Prepared problem statement of the Scientist of Utopia event under
Supernova and was event executive for the same.
 Mentorship: Mentored group of students for case study competition.
 Prepared problem statement for Yuri’s night’23 that was to be organised.
  Code to Cosmos: Organised code to cosmos series on open-source projects related to
astronomy and how one could contribute to it. Speakers were contributors to
organisations like CERN-HSF, OpenAstronomy, ML4SCI and discussed its
relevance to fellowships like Google Summer of Code and other open-source
programs.
 I have dedicated my efforts to meticulously documenting our inventory, discerning
areas where further enrichment is warranted, and meticulously crafting budgets for
the forthcoming sessions related to inventory.

Over the course of approximately two years, I have had the privilege of immersing myself in
the realm of this esteemed club, forging meaningful connections with a diverse array of
individuals. Names like Prayash, Yuvraj, Abhay, Madhav, as well as esteemed seniors
Pratyush Singh, Aditya Surana, Neeraj Kamal, Tanmay, Preety Sarwa, Suraj Patil, Sumant
Chaudhary, and Varun have become synonymous with cherished and indelible memories.
The atmosphere within the club has perpetually exuded warmth, camaraderie, and
unwavering support.

These engagements have not only allowed me to lend my expertise and insights but have also
served as conduits for personal growth and development. This journey has bestowed upon me
invaluable lessons and an abundance of exposure. To perpetuate this ardour and enrich the
experiences of future students. The prospect of carrying forth this legacy of excellence into
the future fuels my enthusiasm and prompts me to seek the esteemed position of “Secretary /
Joint Secretary of the Astronomy Club IIT-BHU” for the upcoming session of 2023-2024,
thereby upholding the Club's rich legacy and guiding the incoming freshers along the same
path of exploration and learning.

Altough it has been great journey to be part of the club but I have observed some
inadequacies as well which are mentioned below in detail with proposed solution and my
vision for the Astronomy Club:

 Certain inadequacies persist, warranting expeditious rectification. Regrettably, the

marketing and public relations endeavours of the club have suffered, coupled
with a dearth of vibrant engagement across social media platforms. Furthermore, the
absence of interactive and intuitive events has become conspicuous.
Consequently, it is imperative to prioritize the augmentation of the club's visibility
and outreach.

 The club currently grapples with a lack of smooth information flow and
communication channels. Additionally, the absence of defined role play
experiences for each member further exacerbates the issue. Addressing these gaps
is essential to foster an informed and engaged community.

 The timely submission of annual budgets is of paramount importance for the smooth
functioning of the club. Unfortunately, delays and inaccuracies due to lack of
communication and information from council and gymkhana have marred the budget
preparation, leading to compromised financial planning and resource allocation.
Rectifying these flaws is crucial to ensure effective financial management and to
maximize the club's potential for growth and success.
  The club currently faces a pressing issue in terms of recruiting freshers as members
of various teams. There exists a noticeable deficiency in actively engaging and
involving new students in the club's diverse pursuits. This dearth of recruitment
undermines the potential infusion of fresh perspectives, ideas, and talents into the
teams, limiting the club's ability to flourish and innovate.

The key initiatives that I would like to take as the Secretary / Joint Secretary of the
Astronomy Club IIT BHU, along with the upcoming Core Team will be working towards the
further growth and development of the Astronomy Club and my aim for the club is to raise
the club to a higher level and expand its domain and work on rectifying the inadequacies
mentioned earlier:

Overall Initiatives

 Team Structure:
o Forming different teams for different verticals including variety of skilled
members with proper clarification on role play of each team.

 Core Team: Consisting of head of each team.

 Tech Team: For handling and updating the website regularly.
 Social Media and Publicity Team: For outreach of the club through
social media platforms and other communication channels and writing
content for the same to be shared across.
 Public Relation and Marketing Team: Inviting guest lecturers for
events and preparing email templets and writeups for the same.
 Events Team: Managing, facilitating and scheduling events throughout
the annual year and executing them as according to schedule.
 Design Team: Designing posters, certificates and all for the club.
 Mentorship: Mentoring students for upcoming outfest and other events
related to astronomy across the globe.
 Advisory Team: It will include senior members of astronomy club and
current Core Team of the club they will overlook functioning of core
team and have their input accordingly.

o This will be basic structure of teams and will be modified accordingly keeping
in mind of work load of members.

 Efforts for visibility and publicity:

o Intuitive social media posts and weekly thread post about events related to
astronomy and science happening across the world through social media post.
o Introducing small activities related to mobile astrophotography and other peer-
based activities.
o Introducing events for school students as well to have them exposer with
astronomy and thus scaling the reach of our club.
  Expanding the domain of Astronomy Club:

o Including more activities to the club related to technical aspects of astronomy

such as data analysis and data process of satellite data. Predicting events
through these databases and hence having exposer to these aspects.
o Encouraging them to contribute to core astronomy projects available on open-
source platforms such as organisations in GSoC or the student programs by
NASA and ISRO for college students or participating in International
Astronomical Search Collaboration for searching asteroid and other stuffs.
o Replenishing the earlier astrophotography and image processing including
images of astronomical telescopes are well activities that were there in the
club, encouraging them to do so by publishing Astro photo of the week.

 Communication and Information sharing among teams:

o In order to ensure a streamlined execution of projects and tasks, a central

document or Notion site will be made where assignments can be assigned and
tracked systematically as well as updates and announcements.
o We can devise a comprehensive schedule for events, charting the course for
the entire year in advance and initiating planning efforts from the very
beginning of the session specially for our club’s main event Yuri’s Night.

 Financial management:

o As the scheduled will be prepared earlier on an estimated budget for the

following fiscal year will be prepared including expenditure on events, outfest,
inventory, prize money and other miscellaneous expenditure.
o Keeping bills of all the expenditure in both hard and softy copy so it can be
accessible at any time whenever required.
o This tentative budget will help us to propose us as soon as possible whenever
are required to present one with modifications if any so to facilitate smooth
budget and resource allocation.

 Marketing and Sponsorships:

o Securing sponsors is vital to enhance our fests and provide incentives, such as
gift hampers, to acknowledge exceptional participants and promote regular
engagement. By establishing strategic partnerships, we can elevate the overall
event experience and encourage wider participation.
o These collaborations also contribute to the growth and prestige of our fests,
ensuring a higher level of organization and rewarding experiences for all
involved.

Thereby I’m concluding my whole plan and endeavour to make the Astronomy Club the best
Club of IIT-BHU and transform it into a cohort destination of budding Astronomers.