Back in the “before times” (i.e. before the pandemic and all the shutdowns), I offered stargazing and astronomy lectures onboard cruise ships. I had a lot of fun doing talks and showing people from all over the world how to look at the stars. As with other groups of people, the folks I sailed with always had interesting questions about astronomy and space travel.
On one of my first trips, for example, I got into a discussion with a rabbi about black holes. On another adventure, I enjoyed lunch with a pair of ex-Navy officers who were on a “retirement” adventure. They actually taught ME about navigation and the stars. Later that cruise, we got to know the ship’s actual navigator, who gave a star-sighting demonstration.
We all had a chance to visit with the young man (who was from Russia) and “talk shop”. Turned out he’d been watching all my lectures via the onboard TV channel. He knew how to do the navigation sightings, but didn’t know much more about the stars and planets.
Traveling with the Stars
Of course, cruises weren’t the only places where I got to teach about the stars. Pre-pandemic, I attended conferences both at home and abroad, particularly meetups where we would gather astronomers and educators to talk about the best ways to bring astronomy to the public. I was a guest speaker at a number of star parties in the U.S. and Canada when I was working at Sky & Telescope, and before that as a graduate student.
One quite memorable trip occurred when I went to Warsaw and then traveled to Torun. Along the way, we visited a series of small observatories that were built by students and their families. I was quite heartened to see the huge interest these folks had in astronomy.
Alas, those days and nights are gone. Well, at least for a while, until the cruise lines welcome me back as a regular lecturer. And actually, it’s only been a recent development that I’ve felt comfortable even traveling to meetings. And, in fact, I did go to a meeting a few weeks ago—the American Astronomical Society (of which I’ve been a member for decades), met in Pasadena, California. It was an amazing experience to get back together with folks I haven’t seen for years.
Keeping Folks Looking Up at the Sky
I still do hear from of my some of my former shipmates from the pre-pandemic cruise days. And, I keep in touch with my fellow astronomy communicators in planetarium facilities, media outlets, and other places. One thing that I notice didn’t stop for the pandemic was our love of communicating our favorite science. I joined the writing staff of Universe Today, and am honored to be among some excellent communicators. I’ve also been a regular on the Weekly Space Hangout. And, in a few weeks, I’ll be leading a star party in our neighborhood (safely masked, of course), to keep the tradition of astronomy communication alive.