TAKE THE 'A' TRAIN TO ThE STARS
-----------------------------
John Pazmino
NYSkies Astronomy Inc
nyskies@nyskies.org
www.nyskies.org
1988 July 30
This is the presentation by John Pazmino and Sidney Scheuer at the
IAU conference 'The teaching of astronomy'. It convened on 1988 July
27-30 at Williams College, chaired y Jay Pasachoff and John Percy.
Text is from conference procedings, edited by Pasacgiff and Percy.
= = = = =
TAKE T H E "A" T R A I N 1 TO T H E STARS
John Pazmino and Sidney Scheuer
Amateur Astronomers Association,
1010 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10028, U.S.A
Ed. Note: The "A" train is one of the New York subway routes that
serves Harlem; it was made especially famous by Duke Ellington's jazz
piece "Take the "A" Train. The authors can provide detailed
information about the "A" train for any readers who have a special
interest in this topic.]
. Astronomers, in addition to their scholarly and academic
functions, have the mission to bring enlightenment to the people. In
the City of New York, astronomers fulfill this mission through the
Amateur Astronomers Association. Over the decades, the Association,
or AAA, evolved a multi-faceted scheme of public enlightenment in
astronomy. Under this scheme, astronomy in New York City has become
a free-standing cultural amenity on a par with street fairs, art
shows, plays, and parades.
Once a month during the school year, the Association presents a
formal public lecture on astronomy. These are convened in the
American Museum of Natural History, the ancestral birthplace of the
AAA. Occasionally, lectures are featured at a large university in
the City for time and place variety. At these lectures, a
professional astronomer explains some contemporary topic on a
first-year college level, illustrated by slides and viewgraphs. The
lectures - and all public activities of the AAA -- are free of any
charge. Area high schools and colleges employ the AAA lectures as an
extra-curricular activity for their students.
In the summer, the AAA stages public stargazing in Carl Schurz
Park, along the East River in Manhattan. Though located in the dense
Upper East Side, Carl Schurz Park offers clear views of about two-
thirds of the sky with adequate shielding from nearby lights. These
sessions, convened monthly in clear weather, feature the celestial
sights of the season the Moon, planets, clusters and nebulae, and
double stars. Telescopes and charts are provided by the AAA.
The Amateur Astronomers Association operates the astronomy
program at Gateway National Recreation Area under contract with the
U.S. National Park Service. The parklands and preserves of Gateway
stretch along the southern frontier of New York and offer clean dark
skies for the urban dweller. The programs include popular-level
slideshows, equipment demonstrations, skywatching tutorials, and
clear-weather star-viewing. Staff for the Gateway activities is drawn
from the AAA's Brooklyn and Staten Island Chapters.
National Astronomy Day is a theme day celebrated in April or May
each year. In New York, National Astronomy Day is hosted by a museum,
park, or school while the AAA provides the astronomy program. In
conjunction with the host facility, this program includes slidetalks,
equipment and project exhibits, panels and seminars, flea markets, and
viewing of sunspots by day and the stars by night. Sometimes movies,
videos, and planetarium shows round out the day's activities.
The AAA maintains a panel of experienced speakers available for
other clubs, museums, schools, and social and civic groups. Speakers
may be AAA members or patron astronomers. The panel can supply a
single person to give a simple slidetalk or it can cater to an all-
day astronomy fair with a corps of astronomers. Speakers-panel
services are customized to suit the client. Fees for speakers-panel
service are quite attractive to even the smallest client.
The Association serves the news media by explaining and
interpreting astronomy events like comets, novae, and eclipses. News
media obtain quick authoritative answers to their questions and they
can engage the AAA for press interviews or radio/TV appearances. The
press, both national and local, routinely carry notices of AAA public
activities. The Associations's interpretation mission extends also to
consultations for outside authors and exhibitors
Astronomers who serve with the Amateur Astronomers Association
directly fulfill one major goal of their profession- to bring
enjoyment and edification in astronomy to the people. If you have
this goal, too, do consider membership in the Amateur Astronomers
Association. For membership details or for exploring other ways to
practice public service astronomy through the AAA -- contact us.