Tech View: Institute for Astronomy reopens to public Sunday

The mysteries of the cosmos, the stories of the stars, have enchanted humans for ages.

Ancient Hawaiians were able to boldly go across the vast expanse of the Pacific through their mastery of celestial navigation. In the late 1800s, King Kalakaua invited the first telescopes to his kingdom, and Queen Lili‘uokalani honored her ancestors as astronomers.

It’s fair to say that today, not everyone in Hawaii holds the scientific study of the universe in such high regard — largely due to where its instruments are located. No matter how perfect Haleakala and Mauna Kea are for telescopes, their environmental and cultural value to Native Hawaiians cannot be ignored.

Meanwhile, astronomy can seem like an impenetrably complex mix of math and physics, a field of study inaccessible to mere mortals. This misconception is fortunately easier to dispel.

On Sunday the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy is bringing back its annual Open House after a two-year pandemic break. It remains one of my favorite family-friendly STEM events, even after I could no longer use my kids as an excuse to attend.

The institute, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2017, has established itself as a global leader in astronomical research. It also collaborates with the departments of physics and astronomy at UH, supporting bachelor’s degrees as well as master’s and Ph.D. graduate programs.

An important part of the Institute for Astronomy mission, however, is community engagement.

“UH is a land-grant public university, so we are working for Hawaii’s citizens, and it’s our responsibility to provide education and outreach statewide,” explained Roy Gal, a friend and associate astronomer at the institute.

The Institute for Astronomy is part of a wider constellation of Hawaii astronomy organizations (including all observatories and the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center) that collaborate on outreach, often under the auspices of the Maunakea Astronomy Outreach Committee (MKAOC).

Part of the motivation is to widen the pipeline into astronomy as a field of study.

“We have undergraduate and graduate programs in which we would like to have more local students, and we would like to see more local people — especially Native Hawaiians — in astronomy and related careers,” Gal said.

He also admits that recent headlines “highlight the need for even more outreach, to a more diverse audience, locally.”

“I think people generally are disconnected from science,” Gal explained. “I think it is fundamentally important that the public understand how we are learning about the universe, and that it is something they too can do in their everyday lives.”

It’s a calling he doesn’t take lightly.

“I take our kuleana to the people who fund us, on whose land we situate our observatories, and who support us, very seriously,” Gal said. “We cannot be takers; we have to give in return.”

And Hawaii has contributed immensely to the field.

“Hawaii is integral to worldwide astronomy — about a dozen nations are partners in various observatories — and astronomy is integral to Hawaii, culturally and economically,” he said.

To demonstrate that during the pandemic, outreach activities included virtual public talks, virtual stargazing and YouTube live broadcasts, one of which drew 40,000 viewers.

Finally, the UH Institute for Astronomy headquarters can again host a variety of hands-on activities and exhibits in person.

There will be solar telescopes set up for stargazing. Kids and grown-ups can play with light and spectra, construct a sundial or ask an astronomer (almost) anything. Bottle rockets are always a crowd pleaser. If you prefer to sit in a cool, dark room and listen, there will be a series of astronomy talks as well.

A number of partner organizations will be there, including ‘Ohana Kilo Hoku, the Hawaii Lego Users Group, the UH Bookstore, Bishop Museum (with a portable planetarium), the Hawaii Space Grant Consortium (firing off straw rockets) and the Hawaii Space Flight Laboratory (showing off Cube- Sats).

New this year will be a lunar rover demo, a radio telescope display built by graduate students, microscopic examinations of meteorites, and Powehi black hole photos.

Powehi was the first black hole ever imaged, and Gov. David Ige has proclaimed April 10 “Powehi Day.”

The Institute for Astronomy Open House will take place 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at 2680 Woodlawn Drive in Manoa.

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Ryan Kawailani Ozawa covers Hawaii science, tech and startups, and hosts local discussion groups at HawaiiSlack.com and HawaiiTelegram.com.