How I became an Amateur Astronomer

My first heavenly body I had been admiring was star on top of the Christmas tree at my age of 4 or 5. My question how all that beauty came to our living room was answered: ”Through window”. Yes? Why I did not hear any noise, and how possible that all those fragile ornaments are not broken and the most, that star on a top of the tree! How can I reach that?

Well, Astronomer was born. Investigative one. At age of 11-12 we had geometry classes. It was thrill to calculate height of nearby heat generating plant chimney with paper ruler, angle measurement and walking to the chimney. Yes, it was 110 meters high. Let’s go higher. The Sun. Children books taught me that I can directly measure grid location on the planet Earth. On the sand bank of the mountain river in a Carpathian Range in the deep forested Central Europe small young boy put long wooden stick into the ground and observed its shadow. When its shadow was the shortest, the Sun was on Zenith, and angle of the Sun above horizon was taken. It was June 21st, 1965, Summer Solstice. Minus 23 degrees of Earth axis declination, and voila, 49 Degrees North Parallel. How easy! More maths is need for meridian. It took radio Prague noon time announcements, my father wrist watch, stick in the river bank to determine exact time when the Sun was crossing local Meridian. Our noon was 28 minutes before radio Prague noon. Calculations – 21 Degrees East. In 1967 we had partial solar eclipse. School maintenance worker found plenty of broken window glass and everybody darkened his/her glass with candle smoke. How excited we were to see our nearest star to be eaten by dragoon. In 1994 in Canton, MA at 10:45 am I took my son and daughter as the only children from locked school were all those poor children were denied that one lifetime opportunity as a children to watch solar eclipse as I did when I was a young boy.
Telescopes? They were expensive and few. Books? Plenty. During my later time I went through Old Greek philosophers, medieval English naturalists. My favorites were Kopernik ( Copernicus) and Kepler. The first open my interrogative nature and latter gave me understanding that all around us is Math and Math only. Can I calculate movements of planets around me? Yes, Keppler did it first time right way. All mighty ellipses.

Still no telescopes? No, I did my first attempt to build one. Paper tube, small lenses and the Moon. It was year 1981. Galileo. Suddenly I could see fuzzy craters; it was so real on a balcony in a capital city of Slovakia.

Russians have been flying for years in Cosmos, Americans left steps on a Moon, new pictures from Jupiter and Saturn – Voyager 1,2, but who’s right? Russians did not find supernatural beings and Americans had joint prayers on an Orbit and the Earth. I took books of Astrophysics and Cosmology. I became even stronger theoretical astronomer.

Where is Capella? And Rigel. Those stars were recommended in marine celestial navigation handbook. It was time when we were sailing around New England. I did not know. I knew about Vega almost everything, but where it is on the sky?

Skyscrapers came handy. One day browsing on a web I found mentioning RI Astronomical Society. Phone call, Dan Lorraine, one visit, pay and nothing. For half year we did not come. We were not astronomers yet. Theoreticians only. Next visit happened during very cold January Saturday clear sky night at Clark dome with just reconditioned red tube Alvan Clark historical telescope where we found our joy. Now we can share time with fellow amateur astronomers and public, to give back that precious knowledge which is built from pieces of scientific information and the result is Wisdom. Congratulations, The Skyscrapers.