We've had a bit of a behind-the-scenes "Star Search" here at Caliente — we needed a new writer for Sky Spy, our popular and longstanding feature about what to look for in the heavens each week. And, frankly, we got lucky. Tucson has an amazing astronomy community, and we were quickly directed to Tim Hunter, an amateur astronomer highly recommended by some pretty impressive sources.
Brief background: Hunter is a professor of radiology at the University of Arizona's College of Medicine. He moved to Tucson — and fell in love with the place — in 1975 after he finished his training as a radiologist at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor.
To get to know him, we recently asked him a series of questions via e-mail. We wanted to know his favorite celestial event and what it's like to own an observatory. We also asked him about the impact of the International Dark-Sky Association, which he helped found in 1987.
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Contact him at skyspy@azstarnet.com.
Q. Are you from Tucson? If not, what brought you here? How have the night skies changed?
A. I grew up in Indiana and Illinois and went to school in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. I came to Tucson in 1975 after I finished my training as a radiologist at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor. I immediately fell in love with the desert and with the good weather and wide-open skies. The night skies are astonishing compared to the rest of the country, but they have brightened as the city has grown. That is why I have been involved in the battle to combat light pollution. I want to protect our dark skies for myself and for future generations and for professional astronomy. I firmly believe we can have good nighttime lighting for public safety, security and recreation, but still protect dark skies. These are not mutually exclusive goals.
Q. What first interested you in astronomy?
A. When I was in second grade in 1950-1951, I was shown a book about the planets and constellations. One of the constellations I remembered from that book is Cygnus the Swan, sometimes called the "Northern Cross." The top star of the "Cross" is Deneb, which is one of the brightest stars in the sky. It is actually the tail star in Cygnus. Cygnus is currently rising (as of Feb. 6) in the early morning. After looking through that book, the title of which I have long since forgotten, I became immediately enthralled by all things astronomical and have kept up my interest since then. Even in those days, I would go outside and try to observe the sky and learn the constellations. That book was printed before 1930 when Pluto was discovered, and it listed Neptune as the most distant planet from the sun. At the time, I knew Pluto was actually more distant from the sun than Neptune, and I chuckled that the book was wrong. Little did I know that 50+ years later Pluto would no longer be considered a full-fledged planet.
Q. You own two observatories, the 3towers Observatory (www.3towers.com) and the Grasslands Observatory. That sounds really involved — how does someone come to own an observatory?
A. Owning an observatory sounds more grandiose than it is. An observatory is simply a place where one puts one's telescope to protect it from the elements. Hopefully, the telescope will be permanently positioned and be ready to go once the sun sets (or ready to go once you open it up during the day in the case of a solar observatory). All you have to do is remove the covers from the telescope and open up the observatory. An observatory can be as elaborate as a large building with a dome and shutter, or it can be a small humble storage shed in which you unbolt one or more boards to open up the roof for observing the sky. In other words, observatories can range from multimillion-dollar professional structures to small wooden or metal buildings providing simple telescope protection and offering a permanent resting place for the telescope. To own an observatory, you simply place your telescope somewhere, put a building or simple protection around it, and declare it an observatory, giving it a name of your choice. My observatory in town holds a 12-inch telescope permanently mounted inside of a 10-foot fiberglass-dome building on the lot north of my house. My observatory out of town houses a 24-inch telescope in a 20-by-20-foot building in which the roof rolls off at night to expose the sky.
Q. In 1987, you and David Crawford founded the International Dark-Sky Association Inc. What impact do you think you have had?
A. I would like to believe IDA has created a public awareness of light pollution and caused many persons besides astronomers to be concerned about our nighttime skies. It has stimulated lighting manufacturers and lighting designers to create much more night-sky friendly lighting, and IDA has at least slowed the deterioration of urban and suburban skies by ever-increasing light pollution. Much more work needs to be done in this regard, and the vast majority of the success of IDA is due to Crawford and his associates, who have put in thousands of hours extending IDA's message worldwide. We can have both dark skies and good nighttime lighting serving the public's needs.
Q. What is your favorite celestial event?
A. My favorite event is sitting in a lawn chair watching a meteor shower under a dark sky. Simply observing a stunning, star-filled sky with my naked eye and with binoculars, preferably on a warm night, is thrilling, especially if it is combined with frequent meteors.
Q. You describe your hobby of amateur astronomy as being out of control. Is that a risk for other amateur astronomers?
A. My hobby is out of control, but I thoroughly enjoy it, and I realize that work and family still come first. My wife tolerates my astronomy, but she draws certain lines in the sand over which I dare not cross. Any hobby can get out of control. Common sense has to always prevail. There are some whose hobby consumes their entire being. They even make and sell astronomical equipment and make a living writing astronomical books, software and articles. The vast majority of amateur astronomers are much more relaxed about it. They like to observe occasional celestial events, watch astronomically related TV shows, read amateur astronomy magazines, and maybe join an astronomy club. Some amateur astronomers are simply armchair astronomers. They like to read about it, but that is as far as it goes. There is no right or wrong way to enjoy a hobby. It's a hobby. It should be fun. If it ceases to be fun, you need to change your approach.
Q. Why do you feel astronomy is important?
A. Astronomy is the oldest science. It encompasses the smallest and the largest objects in our universe. It looks at the strongest and the weakest forces, the fastest and the slowest processes, the hottest and the coldest objects imaginable. It is literally the big picture. I believe a learned adult should have some familiarity with scientific principles just as we should have a basic familiarity with our history, our culture, our literature and our geography. I believe all individuals have an innate fascination with the sky. Just look at what happens when someone sets up a telescope on a street corner. Should we all become amateur astronomers? That would be nice, but no one should become an amateur astronomer unless he or she finds it interesting. What we should do as a society is make sure our learned adults know such simple things as the Earth revolves around the sun in a year, and it rotates on its axis in a day. This to me is fundamental — just like knowing about the Declaration of Independence, the Magna Carta and the Constitution is fundamental to being a good citizen.
