How old are you???

Hi folks:

On another forum on Astromart some folks were lamenting the lack of young people interested in astronomy. While I agree the patience required and lack of blood curdling thrills makes it attractive to the more "mature" mind, I meet many astronomers who are in 20's and the 30's or even younger.

So... Just how old are you and are you just getting started or have you been around a while??

Myself, I just turned 58 this month and have been doing this for a while... I live in light polluted San Diego, pretty much spend every clear evening stargazing from my back yard and try to get up to the dark skies of the nearby mountains at least 2 times a month.

With our great weather here, I commute to work on a bicycle and often take the "long" way home, this week it looks like I will getting in about a 140 miles...

So, how old are you and tell me a bit about yourself...

Jon

Well, here we go...

I'm 40 years old, born in Lima-Peru.

I live in VERY light polluted Coconut Creek, FL (with limiting Mag 3 skies), and try my best to go out to The Everglades (Dark Site) whenever possible (but that might be once every 3 months, due to real-life issues)

I've been always attracted to Astronomy since a child, but started "really" enjoying it with scopes and such about 6 years ago...



Ivan

Hi John,
I'm enjoying the night skies through a pair of 55 year old eyes, been at it now for about ten years. I got started back in Detroit, when I remembered I liked to read about astronomy as a boy. I tried to get my (then) ten year old son interested with a 60 mm refractor. The boy took a couple of looks, said "that's nice dad, thanks" and went his way. I however got the bug again. Thankdfully, I was able to move from Detroit skies (UGHH!!) to Taos, New Mexico where I can enjoy mag 5.5 skies or so from my front yard through a 14" and 8", darker skies for about a half hours drive! Still looking for people to infect with my passion!
Larry Seguin
Taos, New Mexico

52 and change. First bitten by the star bug at about 11 when my sister's fiance -then an astronomy student at Northwestern- invited me to Dearborn observatory for a public. He wrangled me a 6" reflector from the student scope stash and i was off to the races until high school and adolescence interfered... some on-and-off over the years...
Literally walked back into it about 10 years ago when i hiked into a state park and discovered a star party in progress.
Live in a light-swamp in NE Illinois, looking for a good place to retire and set up a permanent site- health and other factors permitting.

Ivan, you are not a beginner....

There used to be a way of doing surveys and voting on here.
Maybe a form could be generated to collect ages, and advertise
the form here on the beginner page or equipment page
(somewhere where people will see it) now and then.
It is a very interesting question for all sorts of reasons.

50.
Got started about 12 years ago when I asked a friend who was involved with guided missile optics why he didn't own a scope.
He showed up at my house a couple weeks later with a 8 inch mirror kit and a copy of "All about telescopes" by Sam Brown
and we ground the mirror and made a nice f 4.5 scope.while I still own that scope I have SCT in my dome. Retired from the Concrete business a few years ago to Arizona. 8)

I'm 51. You can read all about me in my profile (I think that's why it's there )

Doug

I am 27 years old and I am a beginner. Some of you may already know me from the 'Telescope Making' forum - I made a mirror and a telescope by myself, which is the proof of my patience
I really enjoy starring at the sky wonders, (although Chicago's sky doesn't have too much to offer ) and I know that this will be one of my passions for the rest of my life. I know some other guys around 30 who are as enthusiastic as I am about stargazing, so it isn't about the age.

I am 59, still a beginner and not sure what I want for Christmas! 8)

I'm 46 and relatively new to the game. Although I have wanted (and could afford) a telescope since I was 20, I lived north of 62° N until 2000. I assessed the utility of owning a scope every 10 years or so and came to the same conclusion...it doesn't get dark in the summer, and it's a tad chilly in the winter. I moved south at 42 and rekindled my love. Now I own four scopes and I cannot imagine not having a relationship with the night sky.

The lack of youth or "the graying" of the hobby is not unique to astronomy. Talk to hams, shortwave listeners, model railroaders or other people and you'll find the same thing. Young people I know do not pursue hobbies the same way we did when we were young. They are captivated by different things and different technology. Although I feel a pang of regret as I observe this, I'm not sure it's a bad thing or not. It is different and represents a pretty major change in society.

Gary Weber