Monday 25th of May 2020 | Hamilton Amateur Astronomers
Hi everyone,
These are challenging times for many, and I hope that each and every one of you is doing well, keeping safe, and staying healthy. When any of us might be facing serious hardships the wellfare of the club and it’s activities might not seem like a top priority, and that is perfectly understandable. And yet for some, indeed many, it is little things like the familiarity of the night sky and the pleasure of an evening under the stars that provide solace and escape from our daily struggles. So I want to keep you informed of how the club is adapting to these changing climes and what we plan to do in the near future. Even if we can’t get together, we are still a community and we can feel a part of that closeness even when apart.
Here’s a great story from Alex Roman, who, as he says in his tale, has been in the club for coming on 5 years now. Alex is an active observer and has frequented Binbrook many times, often observing with one of his teenage children who are always welcome.
I hesitated to send this story out at first, because I appear in the story, but it’s not about me, it’s really about Alex and about sharing a great hobby with others who enjoy it as much as you.
And now, here’s Alex’s story… ___________________________________________________ “The year was 2015. I like to go to McQuesten park in Hamilton for taking a walk with my dog. One evening I saw a bunch of people with some telescopes and other weird equipment. I start talking to one of the guys, asking what are they doing. He said to me they are part of an astronomy club and they are observing the sky. I saw his little white telescope and I said: “I too have a telescope and I could come with my telescope in a few minutes.” He replied: “Well, by all means, please bring your telescope and we’ll observe the sky together.” I said ok. Then I start laughing because I had a real telescope and my telescope was bigger than his.
So after a few minutes, I brought my masterpiece. I start unpacking and the guy said: “You have a beautiful Celestron C5+ telescope. You can see a lot of things with it.” In the mean time I saw him with a huge tube on top of his “little telescope”. And I asked him what was that? And why you have 2 telescopes? He said very politely: the “white telescope” is a german equatorial mount. THIS is my telescope. Lol. Why german? Why not french or dutch equatorial mount I thought myself?
Anyway I setup my system with a cheap $29 tripod and my (now) little scope. I was struggling with my setup and I could hardly see anything. Out of focus; objects were moving too fast. I was frustrated. The guy then asked me if it’s ok to piggyback my scope onto his telescope. Well, after he did that I look through my C5 and looking through my eyepiece, things were not moving at all. He told me that his mount is moving in the same way as the earth. Yeah, ok, whatever. At first I didn’t understand all the mambo jambo he told me. But in the end he showed me how to take a picture of the moon with my iPhone and he was very patient with me. That’s when I got hooked with astronomy. Thank you big guy.
Oh, and by the way, his name is John. John Gauvreau.” Alex _____________________________________________________
Well, once the blushing goes away I’ll finish this email. Thank you to Alex for sending in this lovely story. Alex was already in the hobby and enjoying his own scope, but the story shows how he found his way to the HAA and how we found a great new member. It happened to be me that Alex ran into that night, but it could have been any of our members and he would have had just as good an experience.
If you would like to share an observing experience just email me and I will be happy to feature you in a future email.
Keep an eye out for the next email which will outline some upcoming club activities.
This week we have a wonderful contribution from Michael Sheehy.
Mike has been in the HAA for 3 years now, joining after his retirement from a career that began with both an Engineering degree (Mechanical) and a Masters of Business from McMaster and led to senior levels in the manufacturing industry.
You might have seen Mike observing out at Binbrook, but he has an even better observing story than many of us. While many members from the HAA travelled to Missourri to see the total solar eclipse of 2017 only to be clouded out, Mike went his own way and enjoyed a beautiful clear sky and a spectacular eclipse from Kentucky.
Today, Mike shares with us a story that many of us can relate to. Here now, are his words… ______________________
“My introduction to Astronomy is plain and simple…science fiction television shows in the 1960’s. I was only 10 years old and watched “Lost in Space”, “Star Trek”, “Time Tunnel”, “Land of the Giants”, “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea”, etc.
Being raised in Greensville, we had no library at that time and I took advantage of my sister’s weekly trip to the Dundas Armoury (now Dundas Community Centre) where she took majorette lessons every Saturday morning.
A walk down to the Dundas Library for three Astronomy books (the maximum on any one subject) and a return three weeks later for three more.
Sometimes the subject material was very challenging. What ten year old knows about “scientific notation” or “logarithms”? I taught myself and certainly, high school math was so much easier years later!
I exhausted the Children’s and Adult’s holdings within a year. On attending McMaster University, I looked at the stacks / shelves of Astronomy books (material that I could never consume in a lifetime). I suddenly felt diminished. I feel everyone should feel diminished once in their lives to keep us humble.
I have been blessed to have travelled this world…Asia, South America, Europe, North America; yet, where ever I am, I go out at night to look skyward for comfort.
While I realize that I may not understand the country or language that I am currently in, I do not see diamonds of stars on the black velvet of the night’s sky; I see familiar friends who have accompanied me on my journey.
That foreign sky always tells me about a ten year boy on Short Road in Greensville trying to figure out the constellations and major stars so very long ago.
Everyone please take care and please continue to smile.”
Mike Sheehy __________________________________________________________
Thank you to Mike for sharing with us today. If you would like share a story about yourself just email me. Anything from how you got started and inspired, to your favourite night sky sight.
I’m running a few days late, and this edition is really from last week. So, to make it up to you, we have not one but two short tales today.
Our first story comes from Ann Tekatch. Ann is one of the founding members of the HAA, past Chair, current Treasurer, and has served on council continuously since year one. And, she is a skilled and knowledgeable observer.
And now, here’s Ann… _________________________________________________________ “One of my favourite observations happened pre-HAA, at the Hamilton Centre observatory. I arrived just after sunset and Barry Sherman was looking at Jupiter through a large refractor he picked up somewhere for $200. He called me over, promising the best view of Jupiter I ever had. He was not lying! The seeing was ROCK steady as it often is at the transition between day & night and Jupiter looked like a Hubble photo! I never forgot it.”
Ann ______________________________________________________________ I completely understand Ann’s enthusiasm. Those magical moments stay with you for years.
Our second story comes from Melissa Whitman. Melissa and her family, including husband Geoff, son Brian and daughter Maia, all joined the club just a few years ago. I remember first meeting them at a public night and Brian’s enthusiasm was infectious. And you may know Maia from our monthly meetings where she draws the tickets for the door prizes (having taken over from Ann’s daughter Alex!).
Melissa’s story connects to Ann’s, and then adds a great twist. Here’s Melissa… ______________________________________________________________ “My first observation of Jupiter was via Barry! But more excitedly, I observed the rotation of the earth but mistook it for the telescope moving. When he explained what I was really seeing, I was blown away!!!!” Melissa _____________________________________________________________ Thank you to Ann and Melissa for sharing these moments with us (and to Barry, who is still showing the sky to people after all these years).
If you would like to share an observing experience just email me and I will be happy to feature you in a future email.
Thank you to Ann and Melissa for sharing these moments with us (and to Barry, who is still showing the sky to people after all these years).
If you would like to share an observing experience just email me and I will be happy to feature you in a future email.
John here once again, with the second installment of our weekly story time.
Today’s tale comes to us from Jo Ann Salci. Jo Ann has been a wonderful addition to the HAA, involving herself in club activities and observing. I was smart enough to invite her on to council a couple of years back and she is now our Education Director, offering wonderful programming to groups all around the city. She has a real gift for dealing with the public, and has enhanced the children’s programming tremendously. She represents the club admirably and, well…basically makes us look good out there!
Her story today is something that, in one form or another, we can all relate to. A big thank you to Jo Ann for sharing this with us.
If you would like to share your story in an upcoming week please feel free to send it in to me (chair@amateurastronomy.org). We would all love to hear from you. For now, enjoy this week’s story, and please stay safe.
And now, here’s Jo Ann… __________________________________________________________
“As a young girl in a US elementary school in the 1960s, becoming an astronomer seemed like a remote option. That didn’t stop me from loving the night sky and being in awe of its wonders.
My first memory is a striking one. Not only was it striking, but it was the beginning of my love of the night sky. Somehow, my 9 year old cousin and I learned that our local science museum held Wednesday night observing sessions using the museum’s large telescope. I don’t remember how large it really was, but they opened a large dome at the museum for this telescope. The dome exists until this day at the top of the Buffalo Museum of Science, although I’m not sure if the telescope is still there.
So there we were, a pair of 9 year old girls, dragging our fathers (who took turns!!) to the Buffalo Museum of Science on Wednesday nights. The first time I looked through the telescope and saw the moon, I never looked back. That was the beginning of my love for astronomy and I had told my parents at that point that I wanted to be an astronomer. The vivid detail of the moon’s surface was etched in my mind. The light and dark areas, the craters, the peaks…seeing the moon with a telescope changed how I saw the moon and the night sky forever! The moon literally “filled my eyes like a big pizza pie”, and I fell in love with Astronomy!!
– The 8″ refractor at the Buffalo Museum of Science
Flash forward to now…I consider myself a VERY amateur astronomer, yet I became one as I had wished for as a child. I had taken an Astronomy 101 course at Mohawk College back in the 1990’s, and guess who the instructor was? Our very own John Gauvreau! So when I joined the HAA about 6 years ago, and saw a familiar face, I knew right away I was in the right place. At that point in time I owned a cumbersome 4″ reflector telescope on a grumpy equatorial mount, purchased from a big box store. I’ve since upgraded (as club members are great at helping me spend my money and they know who they are!). I now own a 5″ Schmidt-Cassegrain and a 6″ Dobsonion. I have also purchased a great set of binoculars, and have accumulated a number of filters and eyepieces. I have even enjoyed 2 Star Party outings…a definite Bucket-list item.
I credit those early days with bringing me to this point. Even though I consider myself a very amateur astronomer, I took on the role of HAA Education Director because I absolutely love sharing the joy of astronomy with others. I just love when people look through a telescope for the first time at the moon or any other object in the sky. Their reactions are similar to what mine was…the surprise, the awe, and the disbelief at how much there is to see on the moon and in the sky. It’s almost as though the moon is sending an invitation for us to see the rest of the night sky with that same sense of surprise and wonder. Children’s reactions are the best! I had one child ask if I had put a picture of Saturn inside my telescope! They couldn’t believe they were seeing the “real thing”.
Whenever you show someone an object through your telescope, try not to take it for granted. You have no idea the impact that it will have on them. Who knows? You might be showing the moon, or planet, or … to a future Hamilton Amateur Astronomer!”
During these times, as we find ourselves distanced from family and friends, we have all had to adapt to a new way of life, with some strange new customs and unfamiliar activities. And when there are so many more pressing and troubling matters that each of us has to deal with it seems trite to focus on a mere hobby. And yet, my time at the telescope has always been a salve for me, lifting me from daily worries and giving me a few minutes or hours of respite. This may be a strange, new world around us, but it remains a familiar and friendly sky above us. Our old friends are still there, and still offer the same pleasures, peace and wonder that they always have.
Monday 23rd of March 2020 | Hamilton Amateur Astronomers
Today HAA is launching a new portal to help education, inform, and entertain the children in our lives as we adjust to the new normal of social distancing and remaining at home to flatten the curve.
To that end, we will be posting a daily astronomy or STEM based activity to help foster the learning process.
Thursday 12th of March 2020 | Hamilton Amateur Astronomers
Unfortunately it has become clear that the only prudent action under the current circumstances is to cancel the March meeting of the HAA. Do NOT go to the meeting location tomorrow (Friday March 13, 2020)
We know that it is disappointing, but considering the small, enclosed meeting space, demographic of our group and various other factors (as outlined by the Public Health Agency of Canada), cancelling is the only responsible course of action. In the end, it is a small sacrifice to make in order to ensure the safety and well being of our fellow members and the community at large.
The status of the April meeting will be determined at a later date.
