My last few years have not been stellar (hehehe) for astronomy. I just haven’t been into the effort required to get out there and observe, and I don’t have a great setup at home. Jacob has a trampoline in the backyard that takes up some decent ground space, but more problematic are the mesh sides that surround the trampoline and go up almost 8 feet in the air, above the trampoline itself.

But I want to get back into it more, and so my first commitment is ambitious.

19. Observe 60 times. Initially, that might not seem like a big commitment, once a month for five years. Except I’m a warm weather observer, not really into the super cold realm. This means that I am likely to stick to May through to October as my main viewing months. Only half the year. But, on the positive side, one of my other commitments will knock off half of them all on their own, so I’m hoping it works.

20. Complete an RASC certificate. The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada has a number of observing certificate programs, including one called Explore the Universe. I already have the materials for it, and I was hoping to do it with Jacob, although I’m not sure he’ll be interested enough to stick with it. You could do a good swath of the requirements each night you do it, but it does take a few nights over the year to get all the targets and record the information. I find myself on the fence about doing the RASC certificate. I don’t really need much of a “support” network to do this, no “accountability” organization like with the Conqueror Challenge for walking. I can pretty much create my own “certificate” list, and even my own pin as a reward when I finish. So I am likely to do one of their certificates and then do just stuff on my own.

21. Enjoy an eclipse. I didn’t feel fully prepared for the last eclipse, didn’t even use my telescope. But I really found it cool, and I’d like to do something a bit more elaborate for the one coming up next year. If the weather doesn’t hold, that could be a challenge to complete, but hopefully, I’ll be able to do something within 5 years.

22. Take 300 astrophotos. I am not entirely sure what this will look like as a goal. For example, I know that I want a collection that does the moon throughout its entire monthly phase. That likely means 27-29 separate photos of the moon from a little sliver to a full moon and then back to a little sliver. For the planets, I can capture Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn relatively easily. Neptune and Uranus will be almost impossible with my setup, but I might be able to get a dot on the screen. And Mercury can be hit or miss. Let’s call it 14 shots, with 2 per planet. There are 110 Messier objects, and I would LIKE to capture them all. Those alone put me slightly above halfway, and I haven’t done the sun (for the eclipse or just normal), any constellations (including Indigenous configurations) or started to play with double stars and DSOs. If I tie it to 60 astro observing sessions above, that just means 5 photos per outing. It won’t quite be that way, I know, and I may fall short. Taking 300 AP images is easy; having 300 relatively different targets and results is more challenging.

23. Build a telescope. That sounds a bit grandiose, I know, but there are lots of designs online for simple small Dobsonians, and I do own a 3D printer which should make printing parts easier. I can order lots of things online like the mirrors, or various screws, as needed. Oh, and to be clear, I am NOT looking to polish my own mirrors. That way lies madness. I also have a handful of other 3D-printing-astro-ideas that I want to do, but the big one is a telescope. Online, the acronym is ATM — amateur telescope maker, although, in the past, some of that was a punny banking reference given some of the costs involved. With a 3D printer, many of the struts and trusses are easy to do. And I’m not looking to sell them, just make a functional one as a learning exercise.

24. Create an AstroLog. Lots of people have astronomy logs, layouts, notebooks, etc. But I want mine to be electronic, likely on my phone. Ideally, I would like to be able to preload a bunch of information into the app or tool that is about MY equipment options, and then when I’m observing, just go click-click-click. I’m toying with the idea that I would be able to take pics through my smartphone at the eyepiece, and then just add them to the app as my “observing” result. I don’t know if it’s a full app, or a website, or more likely, a tool like JotForm that lets me treat the entry like a remote sales log.