by Rex Parker, PhD director@princetonastronomers.org

UPDATE: 02/13/2024
Tuesday, February 13th. Due to inclement weather today, this evening’s AAAP meeting will be virtual only. You can join on Zoom or YouTube Live.

Next Meeting Live in Peyton Hall.  After getting knocked back by a major winter storm last month, we will again seek to have a real live meeting in Peyton Hall for our next monthly get-together on Feb 13.  The guest speaker is Prof David John Helfand from the Astronomy and Astrophysics Dept at Columbia University in NYC.  Dr Helfand is a big name in astronomy and physics, having been chair of the department at Columbia for many years and deeply involved with the American Inst. of Physics (AIP) and AIP Publishing.  Please see Victor’s section below for more on the speaker.  Let’s hope the weather is calm on Feb 13 and that we have a great turnout at Peyton Hall for the meeting.  See you there (or on Zoom, if you just cannot make it to campus that night).

So You Want to Be an Amateur Astronomer?  To those of you who recently signed on to become a member of AAAP, I extend special greetings and a warm welcome.  And to members who have re-upped, your participation and support is deeply appreciated by the club.  For all of us, I pose the question:  why amateur astronomy?  

You may read opinions on the topic which describe how astronomy is one of the few scientific areas where amateurs can make a real contribution.  You can take part in data mining from the big telescopes and transient events reported continually by the large sky survey projects such as PAN-STARRS. You can supplement your local club membership by joining the Planetary Society, and the American Astronomical Society — the most prestigious professional astronomy organization in the country and perhaps the world (https://www.aas.org/join/classes-membership-and-affiliation).  By tuning in to the AAS, and NASA and JPL’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS; https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/), you can jump start your participation in cool observing projects using the AAAP’s telescopes or your own equipment.  For example, NASA is currently seeking citizen scientist help in classifying light curves of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs), some of the most energetic explosions in the universe:  https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/amylien/burst-chaser

But there are other good answers to the “why” question, and maybe these are more important. One answer has more to do with giving back to the world.  The education company EF (“Education First”) states that “Individuals who volunteer throughout their lifetime typically live longer and have better psychological well-being. In addition to the health benefits, volunteering gives people a sense of purpose. The fulfillment from giving back and contributing to society is unparalleled.”  This is a very satisfying answer to the “why” question, and here AAAP can really help by providing opportunities to get more involved personally.  We offer outreach participation for members to interact with the public, both young and adult, at AAAP-sponsored events.  Many external requests are fielded by our outreach chair throughout the year, and spring is the prime time for requests from school teachers and scout groups.  In addition, we hold public open house observing events every Friday night from April through October at our Washington Crossing Observatory.  The AAAP Observatory chairs coordinate these activities, and members can enter training to learn the astronomical hardware/software as well as get a better grasp of how to interact with the public on these nights.  Contact us to get more involved (please find the e-mail addresses in the Sidereal Times banner above).

An equally good answer to the “why” question is, because it’s fun and fascinating to observe and especially to interact with fellow enthusiasts and with the modern technological marvels that telescopes, mounts, and imaging equipment have evolved into in recent years.  There has been a major revolution in astro-imaging that makes it possible for any of us to become more able to see the celestial wonders like never before.  AAAP membership is your path to this exciting way of observing the natural world of our skies, despite the light pollution and challenges that come with our New Jersey skies.

This year will present new opportunities in our club. At the organizational level, here are a few areas to enhance member experience and up our game as a science-outreach organization.

• Increase the participation and contributions by members in real-time at the regular monthly club meetings.
• Provide learning opportunities for members and public to better understand the night sky and the physics of the cosmos, with increased hands-on astronomy observing and imaging in its many forms.
• Strengthen our links and interactions with the Princeton Astrophysics Dept faculty, post-docs, staff, and astronomy students, both during the monthly meetings and outreach events.

The “Un-journal Club” Needs You.  AAAP’s monthly meetings feature a guest speaker, usually a professional, followed by highlights of club activities and member conversations.  This year we want to continue the Un-journal Club, a fun term evoking (provoking?) the journal clubs common in science grad school programs.  For AAAP the Unjournal Club is simply brief informal presentations given in the second half of the meeting by members.  These don’t need scholarly journal-like topics, but merely engage members with what you care about in astronomy.  You can use PowerPoint slides, JPEG’s, astro-images, travel pictures (e.g., bring on a USB memory stick), book reviews, whatever you want including simply your voice.  To get onto the schedule for an upcoming meeting, please contact me or program chair Victor Davis.