Astronomy has been an inherently visual area of science for millenia, yet a majority of its significant discoveries take place in wavelengths beyond human vision. There are many people, including those with low or no vision, who cannot participate fully in such discoveries if visual media is the primary communication mechanism. Numerous efforts have worked to address equity of accessibility to such knowledge sharing, such as through the creation of threedimensional (3D) printed data sets. This paper describes progress made through technological and programmatic developments in tactile 3D models using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory to improve access to data.
Keywords: Professionalism, professional development and training in science communication;Public engagement with science and technology; Science communication: theory and models "The tangible appeals to and mobilizes all five senses, while the visible addresses itself to just the eye. It is our modern culture's obsession with making things visible, fueled by optical visuality, that makes us project a similar framework onto medieval art."Pentcheva, 2006, p.636.
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