February 2nd is celebrated in the United States as both Groundhog’s Day and Candlemas, or Dia de la Candelaria in Spanish. Both celebrations have their roots in astronomical events.

Candlemas (Dia de la Candelaria) is a Christian celebration of the presentation of Jesus at the temple in Jerusalem, commemorating Mary's ritual purification after her childbirth. Following ancient Hebrew tradition, this took place 40 days after Jesus was born. Therefore, Candlemas is now celebrated 40 days after Christmas (Dec 25) on February 2nd. Some people do not remove Christmas decorations until this date, as it marks the end of the Christmas season.

These dates are where the first astronomical connection comes into play.

[This is one of a series of blog posts about our six-year involvement leading the NASA Heliophysics Science Education and Public Outreach Forum. ]

After you’ve done your fantastic work educating students and teachers, after you’ve inspired the public about the exciting science that NASA is doing, it’s time to tell people what you have accomplished. The NASA Science Mission Directorate science education and public outreach forums have been there to help projects tell their stories of success. There are many ways that education and public outreach (E/PO) project managers have been requested and required to report on their activities to NASA. Here are some example and how the forums helped.