Re: ATM demise

[Jeff Medkeff <medkeff@c2i2.com>]

At 04:19 PM 12/26/98 -0700, Jon Bertrand wrote:


>I think perceptions of ATM's demise are largely caused by perceptions of
>astronomy's demise.
>
>And that's largely caused by _light_pollution_.

I don't doubt for a second that light pollution is a large contributor to
astronomy's "demise," and thus to ATM's notional demise (I don't believe in
the latter demise for a minute, just for the record). But I think it is
just one of a convergence of problems that is leading to a situation that I
find rather alarming.

I have had the good fortune of serving as the guest speaker to astronomy
clubs across the US and to some of the larger star parties over the last
year and a half or so. It concerns me that my audiences are invariably
significantly older than I am. As I look out over a group of thirty or
forty people in an audience, I usually see two or three people who are
about my own age (I am thirty). I only rarely see anyone ten years younger
than I, and I only saw minors at three events in the last year (and in this
respect, Table Mountain Star Party deserves special mention, for that event
alone practically made up for the failures of the others).

The demographic "hump" of people from 45 to 65 in astronomy is not
particularly galling - I've always gotten along better with those 15 to 25
years my senior than with my contemporaries. But the absence of anyone at
the entry-level end is a bit alarming. Some suggest that this is because
younger people don't have time, raising a family and the like, to be
involved in astronomy, and only come to it when they are older. Well, *I*
have the time, so thinking this reason was bogus, I have made it a habit to
have a show of hands for how long people in the audience have been into
astronomy. Most of them have seniority that exceeds twenty years. Usually
only a few end up in the less than five years category.

Only one of the groups I have spoken to makes an active effort to recruit
young people (by my definition this is from the age of speech to, say, 25
years) into the club. (That's one out of about forty.) Only two of those
groups make any active efforts OF ANY KIND to boost club membership (in any
age group), or to get the club exposed to the local community on a regular
basis. Only about 5 or 6 of those clubs have a member working in Project
Astro or a similar activity that reaches youngsters.

So in addition to light pollution, I am rapidly concluding that another
important factor in the lack of youth interest is the comfort and apathy of
those presently in the hobby. Of course, the further growth of light
pollution is, now, to a large extent attributable to that same apathy.

There are exceptions to these experiences, of course, and if I haven't
given a talk at your club I'm not pointing a finger at you. I'm also not
pointing fingers at Table Mountain Star Party, and also not at the Tacoma
club (mark my words - Washington state is going to be the population and
intellectual center of US amateur astronomy in 20 years time). But I find
it hard to believe that the forty groups I have spoken to are highly
atypical of astronomy groups generally.

>I'd say it's not on the decline - it's just "storing some potential" to be
>released when light pollution is brought under control.

I'd like to believe that. But it would be much better if you could write
that in the last two years, you have had 100+, or better yet, 500+ kids
exposed to amateur astronomy, even if they still couldn't find the big
dipper, instead of the 10+ young people you mention. And of course, not
just you, but many more of us. At least then some young people would know
that the dipper is there, have an idea of how to look for it, and possibly
have a small seed of interest planted.



I was briefly tempted to post on the topic of S&T's coverage of ATM'ing as
well, but Gary's posting came through while I was writing something much
less adequate. All I will say is that Gary is genuine and correct in the
things he has said, as far as I am aware. The few times that I have
expressed discomfort over S&T's treatment of ATM'ing in the last year or
so, he has fired a note back asking for an article or two and practically
begging that I and other ATM'ers would become part of the solution to
whatever perceived problem we have with S&T. (I don't hear a lot of ATM'ers
complaining that the magazine rejected their manuscript, either.) Gary is
apparently being very proactive, and as far as I can see the only thing
stopping the amorphous ATM community from getting what it wants out of S&T
is - well, apparently the same apathy mentioned above.


--
Jeff Medkeff          | Acting Assistant Coordinator
Rockland Observatory  | Association of Lunar and Planetary
Hereford, Arizona     | Observers, Solar Section

On the web at http://shutter.vet.ohio-state.edu/