Stargazing with JAO

My mentee, Sobina Yu, approached me once to talk about setting up an astronomy organization in her school. Part of the projects she had in line for the Judenite's Astronomical Organization was an out of town stargazing trip. On October 7 an agreement was made between the Manila Street Astronomers and JAO to facilitate a stargazing trip at Big Handy's Grounds.

With my mentee,
the president and founder of JAO

Sobina organized and facilitated mostly everything: from talking to teachers and school administrators, securing permits, parents consents, transportation, budgeting and accounting, and coordination with Big Handy's Grounds. This was her first time handling an activity of this sort so she was very much out of her comfort zone. Even when she got all stressed out - messaging me late at night, contacting various people, explaining to parents, etc. - she handled everything pretty well, and I am very proud of her for doing so. Assisting her from JAO to deal with school documents was her VP, Janina Uygongco. I on the other hand organized the manpower who will serve as facilitators, and telescope providers. I had a bit of problems at first with the changing line up of facilitators since most of the MSA core group had sudden unforeseen work concerns (which can't be avoided, I've had my share). Fortunately I had some reliable individuals to catch the ball - Rheanne Odessa Jimeno and Kenneth Bailador. As hiking was a necessary part of the trip the three of us used portable telescope setups. I brought my Celestron TravelScope 70 and my Celestron C90, while Rheanne and Kenneth brought a PowerSeeker 80 EQ. Also with us were Kashogi Astapan and Khristian Dimacali.

The group left Mendiola at around 1:00 PM on November 15. It was my first trip to BHG. It was cloudy when we got there but fast moving wind currents kept the clouds moving through the night. Unfortunately we missed out on several of the southern targets. Even Saturn was hard to resolve with the poor seeing. In the west we could see the sky glow from Manila, and in the east another bright light source was present. Fortunately It was gone some time past midnight. Friends who have been to BHG said it wasn't there before. For a moment when there was full cloud cover the sky was bright as clouds glowed white from the light sources.

We were able to observe several deep-sky objects including star clusters, nebulae, double stars, and the Andromeda galaxy. In the morning we watched the waning crescent Moon while waiting for the sunrise.

Facing south west, Manila sky glow

Facing East

If you want to read more about this activity visit The Cosmic Wonderer.

What Are You Doing Now?

There is a question that I have been avoiding recently. Every so often, I find myself being asked “So what are you doing now?” (or any variation thereof like: ‘where are you working?’; ‘are you still teaching?’; ‘what astronomy projects are you doing?’). I’ve been avoiding this question not because of its difficulty nor because I find it embarrassing. I have been avoiding this question because I cannot simply put it in a few words. The thing is, I’m doing all sorts of stuff right now that I usually pause and think which to mention, or in which context I am asked before giving a response.

My Past Work

I studied physics and astronomy in college and graduate school because I used to dream of becoming a research astronomer. Heck, I still do. My first job was as a college instructor at the Department of Earth and Space Sciences of Rizal Technological University. Simultaneously, I also held a contractual position in the department as their Scientific Coordinator and Laboratory/Multimedia Assistant. I also spearheaded the formation of the department’s solar research program. I was also very active in the Astronomical League of the Philippines – being a constant lecturer and present in multiple events. I also worked in the Andromeda Mobile Planetarium which went around the Cordilleras for weeks at a time – limiting my time to take up a teaching load for my college classes. These were the few tasks in which (to borrow the university president’s words) I started to ‘create a name’ for myself in the local astronomy community.

Fast Forward Now

As my work with Andromeda was almost over I had a lot of time in my hands that I decided to focus on a number of my close astronomy students to create an environment for them to continue their training and exposure to different astronomy and astro-related tasks. Professional astronomy work is relatively new in the Philippines so there are limited options for growth. This environment for my students became the Guild for Astronomy Innovation and Advancement which focused areas of their development such as: publication, observation, outreach, instrumentation, and research. GAIA also extends its reach to the public by providing citizen science and collaborative opportunities through its Open Research and Collaborative Learning Experience program (ORACLE). I also devoted my time to the Manila Street Astronomers, as one of its co-founders, and created a linkage for GAIA in MSA for their Observation. The MSA is a non-profit collaborative sidewalk astronomy group who goes around different areas to provide free telescope viewing events. Alongside GAIA and MSA, I am currently the adviser for the Philippine Union of Student Organizations for Astronomy (PUSO for Astronomy; puso is the Filipino word for heart), and just recently the National Coordinator for the Philippines of the Astronomers Without Borders.

These collaborative astronomy work is where I spend most of my free time on. All of these are non-profit – and hence enters the paying job. Outside the astronomy scene I am working in Specializing in Modern Interactive Learning Experience (SMILE Group PH). Smile is a STEM/STEAM education company who provides the STEM methodology of teaching through their different programs and classes. They also hold the franchise for international STEM programs such as Engineering for Kids and Challenge Island. My work in Smile involves teaching and curriculum development – especially in robotics where I am currently the lead faculty of. Of course, my love for astronomy and physics won’t drift away as STEM provides for learning across disciplines. We have different astronomy and physics related concepts from space-based robotics to aerospace engineering. I allocate roughly 80-95% of my earning working as a STEM educator to provide for my astronomy work. And because my paid-job is full-time, I squeeze my astronomy work in during coffee breaks, weekends, rest days, and during the night.

Don’t get me wrong, I also take my STEM work seriously. I know I can opt to further my career path by focusing on my professional development like achieving that elusive Ph.D., but the work I’m doing is of equal importance. I believe that in order to develop the local astronomy community we need to provide opportunities and develop our learning culture. We need to inspire learning and thinking beyond traditional means to create solutions and innovations. I believe we need a culture that provides opportunities for everyone regardless of age, status, background, etc. When we develop the learning culture we empower the community. We create learners who create solutions and seek to develop themselves. It may be idealistic to some, and some people in my field may look down on me, but every journey begins with a simple step.

So… to answer the questions vaguely, “I am currently working to make tomorrow better than yesterday. Would you like to join me?”

Manila Street Astronomers Schedule

The Manila Street Astronomers is a non-profit outreach astronomy group.

Part of our aim is to foster cooperation and collaboration among the local astronomy community. That is why our members comprise of volunteers from different astronomy organizations and the general public. Be part of our growing group - professional astronomers, amateur astronomers, astronomy and space enthusiasts, stargazers, everyone can take part. No membership fee/monthly dues of any kind required, just a passion to share and promote astronomy and other STEM areas.

Join us in our upcoming events [I shall try to update this post every time we have a new event]:

or learn more about us at our:

Facebook Group

Facebook Page

Website

Ignite 2016

On February 29, 2016 four astronomy groups came together for a collaborative solar astronomy workshop entitled "Ignite 2016". The whole day workshop was held at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines Laboratory High School (PUP LHS). The participants were exposed to four areas:

• Solar observation and eclipse details
• Telescope basics
• Solar Astronomy lecture
• Astronomy virtual tour

This workshop was done to assist the newly established Astronomy, Science and Technological Research Association (ASTRA) of the PUPLHS. This effort was made possible through the cooperation of the Guild for Astronomy Innovation and Advancement (GAIA), the University of the Philippines Astronomical Society, and the Manila Street Astronomers (MSA).

For more event photos visit link 1 and link 2.

Manila Street Astronomers at Star City

Last weekend, Gary Andreassen invited Christopher Lu and I to join him in Star City for a stargazing event. The amusement park was closed to an exclusive event for the HSBC GSC employees and their families.

Gary and I were first at the scene, and set up close to the roller coaster towards the employee exit. As we were setting up the 8-inch reflector a crowd gathered around us, excited to see what we have to show. Naturally, the amusement park is light polluted so we chose the planet Jupiter as our target.

Star City's PA system also announced our little setup and eventually the line to look at the telescope became as long as the roller coaster line. Christopher Lu eventually arrived and I was able to switch to Saturn which was now high enough to get away from the glare of a light from the ferris wheel side.

Despite the light pollution, we were able to successfully  share the wonders of the universe to people who looked through the telescope (mostly for their first time).

Every once-in-a-while you may catch Gary at SM South Mall, and Christopher at Kalentong setting up their telescopes for a free public viewing.