A field trip for the summer students

© Gemma Janssen

Every year, some non-research experiences are part of the ASTRON/JIVE summerstudent programme. The traditional Wadloop-event has taken part, Giethoorn has been visited, the Wednesday-Bospub evenings are busy as always, and the pancake party has taken place in a revisited form. Lunchtalks, student research daily images and the farewell party are the first indication of summer coming to an end!

New this year: a meet & greet with astronomy-staff-horses! Organised by André, guided by expert horse-trainer Cassie Tooms from Vakantiepark Zonnetij and with support from Gemma, a subset of this year's students got a lesson in Natural Horsemanship. Fun fact: these horses are as internationally diverse as the students themselves: breeds range from England, American, Dutch and Norwegian, and some horses are actually half-Canadian, half Dutch with American ancestry (born in Lhee, though).

After a brief introduction between horses and people, the students learnt how to interact with the horses in a friendly and collaborative way. There were some interesting setups to playfully test the communication; Who's afraid of crocodiles? Can you score a goal with a ball the size of a Lofar antenna? Can you and your companion walk over/under/through/with various obstacles?

Some leadership skills that were gained may prove useful in astronomical context! Overall the main goal was to have fun with the horses, which judging from the pictures, was very well achieved.

Middle from left to right: Nelson and Liam, Lies and Eric, Vlos and Vasu, Trusty and Cristina, Freddie and Fraser.