BUDAPEST, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- Four Hungarian secondary school students were awarded bronze medals at the 13th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA), the Hungarian news agency MTI reported here on Monday.
The event was attended by competitors from 46 different countries and regions.
"Some participants have had the good fortune of studying astronomy as part of the secondary education curricula - a privilege their Hungarian counterparts couldn't afford. With no comprehensive framework available at state schools, most Hungarian competitors prepared via private tutoring or by studying the topics independently," according to MTI.
The competition consisted of three distinct sections, a practical exercise during which students had to locate star formations using a telescope, a theoretical quiz with questions on maths, physics and astrology, and an analytical task.
In total, 17 gold, 52 silver and 58 bronze medals were awarded to the highest-performing students.
Chinese competitors secured two gold, two silver and one bronze medals.
IOAA is an annual event for highly performed high school students from all around the world. The main goal of IOAA is to promote the growing interest in astronomy and related subjects, especially through the general education of young people, and enhancing the development of international contacts among different countries in promoting astronomy and astrophysics in schools.
