ABOVE US ONLY SKY

Starlight, star bright, The first star I see tonight; I wish I may, I wish I might, Have the wish I wish tonight.

While this late 19th century nursery rhyme is by Kait Burgan photos of the night sky by Chris Boar familiar to almost everyone, the galaxies, stars, and planets that shine brightly in the skies above our heads are not nearly as well known. The mystery of the night sky has made it a focus of study since ancient times and astronomy is one of the oldest and most complex of the natural sciences. Ptolemy, Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Hubble, and countless others spent their lifetimes studying the heavens. Today students attending the University of Victoria have an opportunity to receive a degree in physics and astronomy utilizing one of the largest optical telescopes (0.8 m) of any Canadian university available right on campus for their studies. And with the NRC Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, and the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory located nearby, Vancouver Island is considered a leading centre for astronomy in Canada.

“Those guys are working on some of the most cutting-edge topics in astronomy in the world, and because astronomy is so wide, they’ll be specializing in their own areas like planets or galaxies or black holes,” says Chris Boar, President of the Nanaimo Astronomy Society. “You could pick any one particular small aspect of astronomy and spend your entire life investigating it.”

Chris fell in love with the mysteries of space back in the late 1990s when he was a student in the US. He took a trip to New Orleans and paid five dollars to a man on the street with a telescope focussed on Saturn. He didn’t know then that star gazing would later take up a large part of his life. “It’s quite amazing to see its rings,” Chris recalls of his first time seeing Saturn. “I have seen the same effect on other people. I’ve seen people cry when they see Saturn through a telescope. They think I’m playing a trick on them, sticking a photo on the end of the scope or something.

I think it’s just the realization that there is more out there than you and you have to be within 50 miles of what’s called the tend to notice.” centre line in order to capture it.” For those on Vancouver

Being overwhelmed to the point of tears, however, is not Island who witnessed the 2017 solar eclipse, Chris says that a typical first-time experience. For many, looking through a here, it was 97%. In Oregon, it was 100%, but the pandemic telescope is often underwhelming the first time because, as Chris as well as smoke from the forest fires kiboshed his trip this explains, people expect to see images like those from the Hubble year, and he missed another total solar eclipse event. Space Telescope. That is not the case. He says it’s common to see While 2020 has been disappointing for Chris and many Andromeda Galaxy or one of the larger deep space objects, but members of the Nanaimo Astronomy Society, there are you don’t actually see much colour. The images that we’re used to some prime spots to get lost in the night skies right here seeing have been captured with cameras through telescopes. on Vancouver Island, especially this time of year. When Chris himself is an astrophotographer, and notes that “It’s very the days are shorter and cooler, the air stabilizes, making technically challenging, much more so than wedding photography it easier to look through a telescope, as they magnify because it’s such a long process. You need fairly good equipment everything, including distortions in the atmosphere created to start with; fairly expensive equipment.” Chris says he jokes by heat. with his wife about his photography equipment being his Harley “Westwood Lake in Nanaimo is a good spot because Davidson… his mid-life crisis investment. you’re actually high up and hills surround it,” Chris says.

Setting up to photograph the stars is complicated, and the “It shields part of the light dome of Nanaimo, but generally, process of capturing the images takes hours and hours; sometimes if you want really dark skies, you have to head out west to spanning multiple evenings. “Most of my images are all-night Tofino or Ucluelet. There’s a surprising amount of light exposures,” he says. “I might do five or six hours of exposure time coming from Nanaimo and Parksville.” for one image, and then I’ve got to process it. There’s a lot of fancy Humans have always been fascinated with the mystery processing on computers in Photoshop and speciality software to and endlessness of space. We look to the skies for other actually pull all of the detail out of the images.” worlds, life on planets other than our own, and just when

The University of Victoria telescope has a 32-inch / 0.8 m mirror.

Like almost everything in the world today, COVID has changed we think we know how things work and get comfortable in things for Chris’s astrophotography adventure and the Nanaimo our collective knowledge, something new is discovered that Astronomy Society. The group thrives on public outreach, giving shows us just how little we actually understand. What we people a glimpse into outer space through their telescopes while do know for sure is that you don’t have to be an expert in sharing their knowledge. Events like Canada Day would typically outer space and all of its contents to appreciate the beauty it be a big a deal for the society. contains. When we’ve Unfortunately, its 85 members got the green light haven’t met in person since to gather in public February. Instead like many groups again, the of us they rely on Zoom to CHECK OUT CHRIS BOAR‘S WEBSITE Nanaimo Astronomy keep them connected. “If it weren’t for COVID, we would be inviting the public out to see Jupiter and Saturn in the (chrisboar.com/astrophotography) and the Nanaimo Astronomy Society site at nanaimoastronomy.com, as well as their Facebook page. Society will be here to guide us but until then, in the words of Stephen Hawking, night sky right now. That really “Remember to look bright star in the southern Stargazers are also invited to attend UVic’s online up at the stars and night sky at the moment is Open House every Wednesday from 7:30 to 9 pm not down at your feet. actually Jupiter.” on Zoom. Each session includes an astronomy Q&A Try to make sense

For Chris and other serious session, followed by an astronomy-themed presentation of what you see and astrophotographers, COVID by an invited speaker. Please contact the Physics & wonder about what has other impacts as well. “There is one big event in December which I think Astronomy office or visit the UVic Observatory Facebook page for more information. makes the universe exist. Be curious. And, however difficult life I’m going to miss,” he says may seem, there is as if finally coming to terms always something you with the fact that he won’t can do and succeed be travelling internationally. at. It matters that you “There’s a total solar eclipse don’t just give up.” And it never hurts to wish upon a star occurring down in Chile, now and again while you’re at it.

CHECK OUT CHRIS BOAR‘S WEBSITE (chrisboar.com/astrophotography) and the Nanaimo Astronomy Society site at nanaimoastronomy.com, as well as their Facebook page.

Stargazers are also invited to attend UVic’s online Open House every Wednesday from 7:30 to 9 pm on Zoom. Each session includes an astronomy Q&A session, followed by an astronomy-themed presentation by an invited speaker. Please contact the Physics & Astronomy office or visit the UVic Observatory Facebook page for more information.