Outreach

Public astronomy at Texas State

Educating the public about physics and astronomy has been a strong interest during my career. I have participated in various public events (observing sessions, planetarium shows, astrophotography exhibitions, etc.) and enjoyed giving presentations for variety of audiences (general public, undergraduate and graduate students, professional scientists).

Texas State University Observatory

I run the Texas State University Observatory, located on the roof of the Supple Science building. Every Wednesday after sunset (weather permitting) we open the rooftop for public observing — averaging about 25 visitors per evening, and running on this weekly schedule continuously since September 2016. The 16-inch telescope brings galaxies, nebulae, and a long list of deep-sky targets within reach.

Beyond the weekly nights, the Observatory anchors major campus events — Family Weekend (200+ attendees each year, 2016–2024), Bobcat Day, Bobcats Back, and Week of Welcome — and hosts themed evenings around the Orionids, Leonids, and other meteor showers. We have also opened the doors to visiting youth groups including BSA Troop 112 and Girl Scout Troop 43105.

For current astronomy events at Texas State, follow our Facebook page at @astrotxst.

Texas State University Observatory
The TXST Observatory on the rooftop of Supple Science (Credit: astrotxst.org).

Texas State Astronomy Club

In 2016 I founded the Texas State Astronomy Club and have served as its faculty advisor ever since. The Club regularly visits local schools — most often Hernandez Elementary, the Katherine Anne Porter Charter School in Wimberley, and IDEA — running astronomy demonstrations for 4th- through 8th-graders.

Together with Club members I built a small portable planetarium out of PVC pipe. Its design was popular enough at the 2018 WISE conference to win the WISE People’s Choice Award, which the Club went on to receive for four consecutive years (2017–2020).

PVC portable Planetarium
PVC portable Planetarium.

2017 Total Solar Eclipse — Marshall, MO

In the summer of 2017 I took 12 students to Marshall, Missouri to observe the 21 August total solar eclipse. We brought three telescope + DSLR setups to capture the event. The roughly fourteen-hour drive each way was worth it — we were able to see and photograph the spectacular totality.

Total Solar Eclipse 2017
GIF: 2017 eclipse from Marshall, MO.

Society for Space Exploration

Since August 2020 I have been faculty advisor to the Society for Space Exploration, the student organization that anchors the Texas State Space Lab — where undergraduates design CubeSat payloads, build balloon-borne instruments, and learn how space-qualified hardware actually gets built.