Etienne Rollin scowls as he peers into the telescope atop Carleton’s Hertzberg Laboratories. Although there was only a 25 per cent chance of an overcast sky this morning, a hazy layer has settled in just in time to prevent him from photographing some astronomical spectacles.
"It's frustrating," he says while still peering at the sky, looking for a break in the clouds. "The pictures have lots of detail when it's clear."
But cloudy skies have yet to break Rollin’s interest in astronomy.
He looked through a telescope for the first time when he was just 16, he says. With an undergraduate degree in physics from Laval University, a master's degree from Carleton based around his work at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) and a PhD in progress, Rollin says he has based his education around astronomy, though he intends to pursue a job in particle physics after graduation.
"I will keep a foot in the astronomy world but keep it as a hobby," he says.
Rollin is the one of the TA for Carleton's two astronomy-based physics courses. He is also one of the founding members of the Carleton University Astrophysics Society.
Because Carleton's physics program has little focus on astronomy, Rollin and his colleagues created CUAS to help spark Carleton student’s interest in astronomy. He says a membership will only be $5, giving students access to viewing sessions and subscriptions to astronomy magazines.
The society also aims to promote the 2009 International Year of Astronomy around Carleton, a year designated by UNESCO to mark the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s first look through a telescope.
( Orion's Belt )
"The purpose of the year is to recognize achievements of astronomers of the past and to create enthusiasm," says Chad Greene, another CUAS member.
The newly-created society would like to host several events over the course of 2009 to promote the International Year of Astronomy, Rollin says.
The society will make good use of the Dan Kessler Observatory located on top of Carleton's Hertzberg Laboratories as one way of introducing student to the basics of astronomy. The telescope was built during the 1980s and is named after Dan Kessler, a former Carleton physics professor.
The silver dome comfortably accommodates 10 to 20 people. Rollin and other physics TAs often escort physics students to viewing sessions after evening lectures.
Rollin says he observes about once a week and takes photographs whenever the sky is clear enough.
If clouds do obscure the sky, Rollin still tries to find objects for his eager undergraduate students to view.
This evening, he has managed to locate Orion's Nebula through the haze.
"Find the four stars that make a square, then look for the brighter cloud around them,” he says. “It's very faint tonight but on a clear night you can see arms and legs and its blue. It is very beautiful on a clear night."
While the students took turns peering through the telescope, he explains the findings of French astronomer Messier in the 1700s.
According to Rollin, Messier observed 100 objects in the sky that looked like comets but were fixed in the sky. At the time comets were significant because they were believed to be signals of something to come. Messier recorded the co-ordinates of all 100 objects.
Today these objects have been identified as galaxies, nebulas or clusters of stars. The objects are still observed frequently as they are the 100 brightest objects in the sky and some of the easiest to find for new astronomers.
For people not enrolled in physics, Rollin still recommends getting involved with the astronomy. Pulling out a worn star chart, he demonstrates how amateur stargazers can get started. Star charts simply rotate seasonally around a view of the sky showing the constellations, and can be printed off from the Internet.
"It’s a better way to go for people who don't want to get into the finer details," he says.
Another suggestion Rollin has for the amateur astronomer is to simply find a pair of binoculars and a star map outlining the constellations for the season. It is important to get as far out of the city as possible when stargazing, as well.
"You can see the brightest stars but as soon as you want to see smaller ones, head out of town," he says. "It makes a world of difference."
Fellow astronomy society member Greene emphasizes this, recalling his trip to Peru. It was his first time viewing the sky in the southern hemisphere and his group was far outside of any city. There were more stars than he had ever seen before, he says.
"It was like there was too much to see."