[AstroNet] [Staff] Lion's Head Feedback

[Daniel Minnaar]

That's really awesome. I remember after I got my first 10" dob, looking at
Tuc 47 - I felt my eyes were watery and I couldn't sleep the entire night
thinking about what I saw.

I constantly find that whenever I speak to friends about astronomy related
concepts and stories, they tend to not pay too much attention - until they
take a peek through my scope. They all admit that the cosmos is generally
thought of as a 'myth' because most people don't get to experience anything
of it. We live our entire lives with the Sun coming up and down each day,
with the stars shining at night and gone in the morning.

"Why is Jupiter moving so quickly?"
"It's not moving."
"Huh? It is, I can see it."
"No, thats the Earth rotating."
"Do you mean - OH WOW, I _never_ thought of it like that! And WOW, now that
I take notice, the stars are moving too! I can't believe there is so much
more to this. I feel like I've lived my life with blindfold on!"

Amazing - I love a constructive reaction!

On Thu, Mar 12, 2009 at 10:08 AM, Mellony Spark <mellony at saao.ac.za> wrote:

> Wow Kevin, you certainly have one of the best jobs around here :) Thanks
> for the heart-warming feedback/inspiration, it's good to hear. I still feel
> a *small* measure of guilt that we actually get paid to do this, but if it
> means we're able to help many other people jump out of their routine for a
> moment and share the 'wow-factor', that's great!
>
> Mell
>
> Kevin Govender wrote:
>
>> Every now and then one should take a step back and reflect on why it is
>> one does what one does.
>>
>> Tonight on Lion's Head such an opportunity was afforded to us with a
>> perfectly clear still warm night with a full moon, Saturn, Orion and
>> Southern Cross hanging over the majestically polluting city lights of Cape
>> Town. On such a marvellously reflective venue we had taken up one 6 inch
>> Dobsonian telescope and an Earthball. By our estimate considering time spent
>> and rate of viewing, there were over 250 views through the telescope (fewer
>> separate individuals since some came by twice or thrice for different
>> objects). Of the numerous WOWs and OHMYGODs and NOWAYs that we heard there
>> was one that stuck out the most. There was a twentysomething girl who was so
>> completely blown away by Saturn's rings that she actually broke into tears!
>> She could not believe what she was seeing to the point that she grabbed both
>> my hands in hers, looked me in the eyes with tears in hers and said
>> something along the lines of "but you don't understand - this is so amazing
>> - I've never seen anything like this before"
>>
>> If ever you doubt that astronomy can change people's lives, please come
>> speak to me and to many others who see these things daily!
>> If ever you doubt the impact of the work you do in promoting astronomy, we
>> definitely need to chat.
>> If ever you feel overwhelmed with all the beaurocracy and routine of daily
>> life, take some time to go outside and look at the skies - and perhaps take
>> someone with you - to find your peace.
>>
>> Astronomy is more than just another field of science - it is a source of
>> inspiration and wonder - a tool to shape not just our perspective of the
>> universe but also our actions in interacting with it - and it is the one
>> thing that ties all of us at SAAO together!
>>
>>
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-- 
If you have any additional queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind Regards,

Daniel Minnaar
daniel.minnaar at gmail.com
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