I have been enjoying astronomical events my whole life. Eclipses. Solar flares. Galaxies 12 million light years away.
It is the best hobby in the world. And yet — even though we have come so far and believe our world is full of equality, for a long time, — it has not always felt like it belongs equally to everyone.
That is the conversation I want to have at STARFEST this August.
Eyes on the Sky: Who Gets to Look? is a panel I am moderating on Friday August 14th at 1:00 PM at STARFEST in Mt. Forest, Ontario. I will be joined by three extraordinary women:
Marsha Wilcox — fine art photographer, scientist, and the woman who will tell you she has five master’s degrees and two PhDs and then laugh about it. Her deep sky work is extraordinary.
Kerry-Ann Lecky Hepburn — meteorologist, pilot, award-winning astrophotographer, NASA APOD featured — and the woman with an asteroid named after her.
Noor Oada — astrophysicist, educator, and the person who introduces four-year-olds to telescopes for the first time and watches the moment it happens.
We are going to talk about the women who mapped the universe and were nearly written out of its history. About the walls that existed then — explicit, legal, undeniable — and the quieter walls that exist now. About finding your tribe under the sky. And about what it would actually take for the stars to belong to everyone.
Dr. Helen Sawyer Hogg — the first woman President of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada — spent her life believing exactly that.
But I am very happy to share a little webpage with resources and tales of great women astronomers and ways to connect with the amazing women in our Astronomy Community….. You can find that page HERE.
See you all at Starfest!