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this question is for people that is top contributor in astronomy.?
- Thread starter Siyuan
- Start date
I haven't time to be a top contributor, but I have nearly 10,000 points. I just have been mad on astronomy for I would guess twice as long as you have lived.
Reality check: If you were mad about a facet of astronomy, say meteors and comets, and read all literature and went out to view all comet and meteor apparitions that came along, in very little time you could be an expert in that facet, and know more about it than most astronomers.
The reality is that professional scientists of any kind are usually expert only in the area of their research. In an astronomy degree there isn't time to get into the depth of each facet of the subject, certainly not like you could do in a few years on one facet, and by the time the scientist gets into doctorate, he/she is really specialising.
Astronomy is a huge subject - nobody knows everything, and even pros will generally only know a lot about a small part. People have to get out of thinking that scientists know everything. If you have an inquisitive mind, you can get as broad a knowledge as any scientist, without having to do a day of college. And in many cases, scientists are so channeled into their facet of science that they lose sight of the overall picture.
Reality check: If you were mad about a facet of astronomy, say meteors and comets, and read all literature and went out to view all comet and meteor apparitions that came along, in very little time you could be an expert in that facet, and know more about it than most astronomers.
The reality is that professional scientists of any kind are usually expert only in the area of their research. In an astronomy degree there isn't time to get into the depth of each facet of the subject, certainly not like you could do in a few years on one facet, and by the time the scientist gets into doctorate, he/she is really specialising.
Astronomy is a huge subject - nobody knows everything, and even pros will generally only know a lot about a small part. People have to get out of thinking that scientists know everything. If you have an inquisitive mind, you can get as broad a knowledge as any scientist, without having to do a day of college. And in many cases, scientists are so channeled into their facet of science that they lose sight of the overall picture.
no, i don't work for nasa. i do, however, work for a technology company that does many of the sorts of things nasa does.
you don't need to work for nasa to be knowledgeable about space. you just have to be interested, and willing to learn.
you don't necessarily need formal education. you can learn this stuff on your own, though a 2nd degree in engineering doesn't hurt.
later: like any others here, i've never made a dime from astronomy. indeed, i pay handsomely for the privilege.
you don't need to work for nasa to be knowledgeable about space. you just have to be interested, and willing to learn.
you don't necessarily need formal education. you can learn this stuff on your own, though a 2nd degree in engineering doesn't hurt.
later: like any others here, i've never made a dime from astronomy. indeed, i pay handsomely for the privilege.
doug_donaghue
New member
I'm no longer a 'Top Contributor' because I don't have enough time to hang out here. But no, I don't work for NASA. I know some people who do, and I've done a couple of consulting things that ended up involved with the Space Program, But that's about the extent of my relationship to NASA.
Doug
Doug
J
j.quinnell27
Guest
No, I am fond of astronomy, chemistry is my profession, I am PhD, and I like quantum physics, more of 30 years ago.
I used to be a sensor data analyst for the US Air Force (Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio). Then I did weapons systems research work for a defense contractor in Huntsville AL. As a hobby, I used to run around timing lunar graze occultations for IOTA. Today, I'm a hillbilly who raises goats and grows apples, writes celestial mechanics freeware, engineers gravity-only (electricity-free) water systems for my house, reads a lot of fantasy and sci-fi, and offers racist commentary on the internet from time to time.
When I was younger (in college), I wanted to work for JPL/NASA. But they didn't hire me, so I did the Air Force thing instead. I didn't much like it though. All the sensors I knew about just looked at the Earth, non-stop, every day. Big yawn. JPL would have been better.
When I was younger (in college), I wanted to work for JPL/NASA. But they didn't hire me, so I did the Air Force thing instead. I didn't much like it though. All the sensors I knew about just looked at the Earth, non-stop, every day. Big yawn. JPL would have been better.
No, I don't work for NASA. Actually, since I'm Canadian, it would be the Canadian Space Agency that I would work for, but I don't. I have been an amateur astronomer since I was sixteen years old, more than 52 years ago. That means I never got paid to do astronomy. That changed a few years ago when I got a couple of paying jobs, running a portable planetarium for the Royal Ontario Museum, and writing content and doing software support for Starry Night software. A few weeks ago, I started writing a weekly column for Space.com. So I'm finally getting paid to do what I love best!
As to why I hang out here, it's because I got a lot of help from advanced amateur astronomers when I first got involved in astronomy, and I am happily paying back into the community by helping beginners. I find it shocking that certain pathological individuals here on Yahoo!Answers seem to get off by harassing the Top Contributors. It seems that no good deed goes unpunished!
As to why I hang out here, it's because I got a lot of help from advanced amateur astronomers when I first got involved in astronomy, and I am happily paying back into the community by helping beginners. I find it shocking that certain pathological individuals here on Yahoo!Answers seem to get off by harassing the Top Contributors. It seems that no good deed goes unpunished!