Amateur astronomy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  (Redirected from Star gazing)
Jump to: navigation, search
Amateur astronomers watch the night sky during the Perseid meteor shower.

Amateur astronomy, also called backyard astronomy and stargazing, is a hobby whose participants enjoy watching the sky, and the abundance of objects found in it, mainly with portable telescopes and binoculars. Even though scientific research is not their main goal, many amateur astronomers make a contribution to astronomy by monitoring variable stars, tracking asteroids and discovering transient objects, such as comets and novae.




Amateur astronomy objectives[edit]

An image of the Cat's Paw Nebula created combining the work of professional and amateur astronomers. The image is the combination of the 2.2-metre MPG/ESO telescope of the La Silla Observatory in Chile and a 0.4-meter amateur telescope.


Most amateurs work at visible wavelengths, but a small minority experiment with wavelengths outside the visible spectrum. An early pioneer of radio astronomy was Grote Reber, an amateur astronomer who constructed the first purpose built radio telescope in the late 1930s to follow up on the discovery of radio wavelength emissions from space by Karl Jansky. Non-visual amateur astronomy includes the use of infrared filters on conventional telescopes, and also the use of radio telescopes. Some amateur astronomers use home-made radio telescopes, while others use radio telescopes that were originally built for astronomy research but have since been made available for use by amateurs. The One-Mile Telescope is one such example.

Common tools[edit]


Although specialized and experienced amateur astronomers tend to acquire more specialized and more powerful equipment over time, relatively simple equipment is often preferred for certain tasks. Binoculars, for instance, although generally of lower power than the majority of telescopes, also tend to provide a wider field of view, which is preferable for looking at some objects in the night sky.



The Internet is an essential tool of amateur astronomers. The popularity of CCD imaging among amateurs has led to large numbers of web sites being written by individuals about their images and equipment. Much of the social interaction of amateur astronomy occurs on mailing lists or discussion groups. Discussion group servers host numerous astronomy lists. A great deal of the commerce of amateur astronomy, the buying and selling of equipment, occurs online. Many amateurs use online tools to plan their nightly observing sessions using tools such as the Clear Sky Chart.

Common techniques[edit]

While a number of interesting celestial objects are readily identified by the naked eye, sometimes with the aid of a star chart, many others are so faint or inconspicuous that technical means are necessary to locate them. Although many methods are used in amateur astronomy, most are variations of a few specific techniques.

Star hopping[edit]



Setting circles[edit]




GoTo telescopes[edit]

GOTO telescopes have become more popular since the 1980s as technology has improved and prices have been reduced. With these computer-driven telescopes, the user typically enters the name of the item of interest and the mechanics of the telescope point the telescope towards that item automatically. They have several notable advantages for amateur astronomers intent on research. For example, GOTO telescopes tend to be faster for locating items of interest than star hopping, allowing more time for studying of the object. GOTO also allows manufacturers to add equatorial tracking to mechanically simpler alt-azimuth telescope mounts, allowing them to produce an overall less expensive product. GOTO telescopes usually have to be calibrated using alignment stars in order to provide accurate tracking and positioning. However, several telescope manufacturers have recently developed telescope systems that are calibrated with the use of built-in GPS, decreasing the time it takes to set up a telescope at the start of an observing session.

Remote control telescopes[edit]

With the development of fast Internet in the last part of the 20th century along with advances in computer controlled telescope mounts and CCD cameras 'Remote Telescope' astronomy is now a viable means for amateur astronomers not aligned with major telescope facilities to partake in research and deep sky imaging. This enables anyone to control a telescope a large distance away in a dark location. The observers can image through the telescopes using CCD cameras. The digital data collected by the telescope is then transmitted and displayed to the user by means of the Internet. An example of a digital remote telescope operation for public use via the Internet is the The Bareket Observatory.

Imaging techniques[edit]

Amateur astronomers engage in many imaging techniques including film, DSLR, and CCD astrophotography. Because CCD imagers are linear, image processing may be used to subtract away the effects of light pollution, which has increased the popularity of astrophotography in urban areas. Narrowband filters may also be used to minimize light pollution.[1]

Scientific research[edit]


The majority of scientific contributions by amateur astronomers are in the area of data collection. In particular, this applies where large numbers of amateur astronomers with small telescopes are more effective than the relatively small number of large telescopes that are available to professional astronomers. Several organizations, such as the American Association of Variable Star Observers, exist to help coordinate these contributions.






Notable amateur astronomers[edit]

Prizes recognizing amateur astronomers[edit]

See also[edit]

Amateur astronomy organizations[edit]


  1. ^ "What are the advantages of CCD imaging over digital camera astrophotography?". Starizona. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  2. ^ Cox, Robert E. (October 1958). "Albert G. Ingalls, T. N". Sky and Telescope 17: 616–617. Bibcode:1958S&T....17..616C 
  3. ^ Pendergrast, Mark (2004). Mirror mirror: a history of the human love affair with reflection. New York: Basic Books. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-465-05471-8. Retrieved August 5, 2011. 
  4. ^ "The Springfield Stars Club History". Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved August 5, 2011. "Russell Porter… considered to be the founder of amateur telescope making." 
  5. ^ Kannappan, Sheila (April 2001). Border Trading: The Amateur-Professional Partnership in Variable Star Astronomy (M.A. thesis). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. p. 7. Retrieved August 5, 2011. "[A]mateur telescope making (ATM) took off when Albert Ingalls and Russell Porter teamed up." 

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]