The Real Joy of Astronomy

Interest in the night sky came about when man first looked up to notice strange phenomena. This was called “Starlight”. Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences known. It was curiosity, wonder, observation and thought throughout the centuries that brought us to the current understanding of the universe. It was with the most valuable instrument that humans started to learn the properties of heavenly bodies… The unaided eye.

Observing is really what amateur astronomy is all about. I can recall the exact day I became hooked on astronomy. It was a warm spring back in 1975 that allowed my best friend and me to ride our bikes after dinner until the sunset brought on twilight. There was one particular night that detoured our attention from the earth and put it into the sky. Both of us were pedaling as fast as we could to beat the darkness that was quickly falling upon us to get home in time for dinner. As we turned down the last road before reaching our houses there was a swift burst of light that caught the corner of my eye. My sense of curiosity forced me to stop instantly. When I took a good look at the spot where I saw the light, I noticed that the light was no longer there. The only thing that was there was a newly constructed house. My first and only thought was that a light had been left on in the house. Not being convinced, I slowly backed up and there it was… the bright light. To my astonishment, it wasn’t a light bulb at all. In fact, it was the waxing gibbous moon reflecting off the garage window.

I had received a small refracting telescope made and sold by Sears Roebuck for Christmas the previous year. I was always looking for an excuse to get it out and use it and this was it! After pointing out the light source to my friend, Scott, I shared my idea of getting out the telescope and looking at the moon with it. Scott and I biked to my house as fast as we could with excitement and anticipation. As I pointed the telescope to the moon and focused the eyepiece, I couldn’t believe my eyes. “Whoa!! You have to see this!” I shouted. As my friend Scott got a peek, he yelled; “Look at all of the mountains!” A simple view of the moon started a lifelong journey through the universe. It was then that my passion for astronomy began!

It was visual observing that maintained my strong interest in astronomy. In 1976, my family and I relocated to Cape Cod, MA. It was there that I met Muir whose family had just moved into my development from Colorado. We discovered we both shared the same interest in astronomy. As time went on, we both advanced our knowledge of astronomy in our own ways. While Muir used to read numerous books on the subject, I would enjoy viewing documentaries. However, there was one thing we always shared equally… Observing! Muir had his Celestron 8″ SCT and I eventually acquired an Astroscan 4.45″ wide-field reflector manufactured by Edmund Scientific.

It was Muir who showed me all for the first time through his Celestron 8″ telescope, M31 – The “Andromeda Galaxy”, M57 – The “Ring Nebula” and M13 – The “Great Globular Cluster in Hercules. In exchange, I recall introducing Muir to M27 – The Dumbbell Nebula. I recently asked Muir what he gets from observing… “When I find a Deep-Sky object for the first time, I feel great wonder, excitement and a bit of relief as if it were a big accomplishment. Observing, to me, is an adventure.”

Many years later Muir and I co-founded an educational organization whose mission is to promote astronomy education in schools and to the general public. We believe the joy we experienced from looking through telescopes years ago needed to be shared with others. Today it can either be with a backyard telescope or a remote robotic telescope.

https://youtu.be/7KzPDdo4pRs