ASTRONOMY AND THE FAMILY
Copyright (c) 1991 by Larry Klaes
When Kunta Kinte, the main character in that popular television miniseries ROOTS, held up his diaperless newborn son to the starry night sky, he was not just declaring to the Universe at large the arrival of this special little piece of his own work; Kunta was also giving the infant his first exposure to the wonderful world of astronomy!
As Kunta so beautifully illustrated in that multipart blockbuster, teaching one's offspring about the mysteries and amazements of the Cosmos can almost never start early enough. From the time when a young child can actually begin to understand (though not necessarily obey) a parent's commands for direction, one should start taking the tyke outside during clear nights, preferably those lacking in any dreaded light pollution. Once this is established, the parent should then enthusiastically exclaim "Look up!" to their child, usually with an arm and index finger aimed in the general direction of space for guidance.
Normally and fortunately, most children will look up at the night sky on their own initiative, becoming readily impressed with the myriad of bright stars and the ever changing phases of the Moon. The occasional sighting of a meteor streaking through Earth's atmosphere from the depths of the interplanetary realm is also more than enough to win over a child's newly forming mind. Should all else fail, an aircraft soaring overhead with its navigation lights blinking will probably do the trick just as well.
Soon your child, and perhaps yourself, may be asking why one should be so adamant about learning the wonders of the Universe? On a basic level, the contents of space are fairly neat things, being certainly more abundant in strange and fascinating objects than your typical television talk show. Things of a neat and weird nature generally appeal to small humans (and most bigger ones). The average science fiction plot set in space usually gives only a rudimentary and often distorted version of what is truly going on "out there".
The next important reason for becoming familiar with astronomy has to do with the fact that most Earth-bound people fail to realize from early on that Earth is actually just a very small part of the Universe as a whole (with emphasis on the word very). To say that our planet takes up space in the Cosmos like a single dust mite would fill the Houston Astrodome is an understatement of major proportions. It is only logical - and perhaps a safe thing as well - that everyone should have at least some education on how our humungous neighborhood is set up and functions on an epoch-to-epoch basis.
There is also the remote chance that your child might one day be on a quiz show and have to know the rotation period of the pulsar in the Crab Nebula to win large sums of money and household appliances.
Material goals aside, there is a very important reason for whole families to take up the art of astronomy: It is one of the few social and scientific activities which the parent and child unit can do together without becoming either overly confused or embarrassed. It is not as easy for a child to become, say, an amateur nuclear physicist; the price of a good atomic particle accelerator alone is prohibitive. To be an amateur astronomer, however, one need merely to walk outside on a clear, dark night and practice the technique of looking up, which should already have been taught at a very early age. The sheer vastness of the Universe will ensure that every family member has an unobstructed view of their newfound hobby.
It should be further noted that since astronomy is usually an outdoor activity, the family will tend to achieve both a physical and social closeness, if for no other reason than to ward off the cold or insects, depending upon the season.
Where to Go From Up
Like most hobbies, how far you intend to have your child enjoy their new interest depends upon how much you're willing to spend for the equipment generally associated with astronomy. While it is a most pleasant and inexpensive experience to simply be in your backyard looking up into the star-spangled darkness using only the eyes owned since birth, more often than not your child (and probably you) will eventually become dissatisfied with mere unaided staring into the night.
You and your offspring will suddenly become overwhelmed with the urge to buy a very large, heavy, and costly elongated cylinder with a variety of knobs, lenses, mirrors, and metal tripods known since the early Seventeenth Century as a telescope. You will dream of using this instrument to dance among the strange and mysterious surfaces of alien worlds and the fiery gases of countless stars whirling through the Cosmos, just like in a typical episode of STAR TREK.
All I have to say to this impulse is DON'T - at least not right away. Like any other discipline, astronomy requires that you learn to walk before you enter the Boston Marathon. Too many times is the following scenario repeated during birthdays and other gift-giving holidays: A child expresses an interest in seeing the stars. The parent, responding like birds do to the open mouths of their chicks, will instinctively feed that interest. A telescope, either of the large, heavy, and costly variety or the small and cheap type, will be purchased. The sale of this telescope more often than not was made due to a combination of the parents' budget and the accompaniment of an advertisement containing several really awesome photos of various planets and stars allegedly taken through that very instrument.
Invariably, the child will run outside on the first clear night with a full Moon in the sky to see these celestial wonders with the same hopeful clarity of those images obtained by the instruments atop Mount Palomar. Unfortunately, the child will probably aim his present at the bright face of Earth's natural satellite - all set to observe the landing site remains of the APOLLO missions - and instead reality will settle in. More than likely, your offspring will see only darkness, or possibly the reflection of his own eye. He will quickly discover that finding objects in the Universe with your average telescope is an exercise in frustration. This is due both to the sensitive nature of the light-gathering abilities of such devices and the sad lack of astronomical knowledge by many would-be junior Galileos and their parents.
There is usually only one remedy to the previous scenario, in order to keep that telescope and the child's interest from ending up stored away and forgotten forever within a matter of weeks: Yes, just like operating a VCR, one has to read a manual before the glories of the Cosmos are revealed to them. Since the intricacies of the heavens are far more involved than those of your typical household appliance (but not by much), there is a virtual plethora of manuals which one has available to oneself.
It is generally recommended that unless the child and parent can quickly answer without assistance such questions as what are stars or what is the composition of the material ejected from an erupting volcano on Jupiter's moon Io, it is best to find a beginner's book on space that has been published no earlier than a few years from the present time. Such items may be found at conveniently located book stores and libraries. Once the proper manuals are secured, begin to share the wonderful opportunity of being educated with your child.
Before you read up on azimuths or focal points or film exposure speeds, take time to learn the general design of the Universe you intend to observe. Learn that there are nine known planets - one of which you are standing on - orbiting our Sun, which happens to be a star not too unlike those seemingly smaller points of light in the sky. Discover that our solar system is but one of billions of other star systems in a giant spiral structure known as a galaxy. Almost every object you can see in the night sky with your naked eyes is part of this immense star island we call the Milky Way. And know that the Universe does not end at our galaxy, for there are billions of other star islands like it spread throughout the Cosmos, all so far away that the normal human mind tends to take a vacation rather than try to imagine such vastness. Learn just this and a few extra details along the way and you will already be ahead of the game over those who wander Earth barely aware of the treasures circling about them.
Once you have the astronomical fundamentals down pat - and you and your offspring still have the desire to become more cosmological - there are now two major avenues for you to proceed towards, both of which can be participated in simultaneously for years to come. One direction for you and your child is to become what is known as an armchair astronomer or space explorer. This behavior generally involves the collecting of increasingly more sophisticated manuals without necessarily ever buying a telescope. Many are those who prefer to enjoy this hobby from the relative safety of an easy chair and a book propped in a lap. Much can be learned about the Universe this way, with only a fraction of the time and expense spent by those professional astronomers in their important observatories or the astronauts in their advanced spacecraft, who usually end up plopping their research results into such works as it is.
The other way is to go out and purchase that instrument of stellar observation and a good set of star charts. While there is certainly nothing wrong with buying a quality telescope, one might find it easier to actually start with a good pair of binoculars. No, the average binoculars will not bring close to you the wondrous details of the Moon's cratered surface or the frozen polar caps of Mars, as witnessed numerous times in your manuals - but these pictures were very likely taken by professionals and space probes, so don't worry about such things for now. Your goal at this time is to discover the location in the night sky of those wandering stars and planets which you have been reading about. Intricate details will come later. In most cases, binoculars will serve this purpose nicely, usually at a much cheaper price.
Furthermore, it will be almost guaranteed that you and your child will actually see these celestial objects with your binoculars, which do not require such sensitive light-gathering capabilities as telescopes, nor are nearly as bulky in comparison. And remember that children are easily impressed, so just telling them that the small, fuzzy blur they are looking at is the real Andromeda Galaxy will usually be enough to keep them (and probably you) satisfied for the present. You will also be using this time to learn just how far your child wishes to pursue studying the heavens and to practice for the day when you do buy that telescope.
A nice aspect of taking these directions in astronomy and space exploration - beyond the already mentioned fact that you can perform both at once - is that your child could eventually end up taking a career in the field, one whose disciplines are as varied as the Universe itself. Or perhaps your son or daughter could become interested in another scientific field in the process, which is just as good and beneficial. If nothing else, you may rest in knowing that your children will have some knowledge of what the Cosmos is like, perhaps one day passing it on to their sons and daughters.
It is comforting to know that the Universe will be around long enough to teach quite a few future generations, at least until the era when the Sun swells into a giant red star and engulfs Earth (You did read about this in your manuals, didn't you?). Hopefully by then, our distant children will be settled on the worlds of more stable star systems, pointing out new planets and constellations to their young ones in the ancient rituals of knowledge gathering, family unity, and looking up.
About the Author -
Larry Klaes, EJASA Editor, wrote the above work originally as a gift for a co-worker expecting the birth of his first child. Larry is the recipient of the ASA's 1990 Meritorious Service Award for his work as Editor of the EJASA since its founding in August of 1989.
Larry is the author of the following EJASA articles:
"The One Dream Man: Robert H. Goddard, Rocket Pioneer" - August 1989
"Stopping Space and Light Pollution" - September 1989
"The Rocky Soviet Road to Mars" - October 1989
THE ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE ATLANTIC
May 1991 - Vol. 2, No. 10
Copyright (c) 1991 - ASA
