Jay Pasachoff Wins the 2019 Klumpke-Roberts Award of the ASP

[Dan Zevin [Eclipse Megamovie Team]]

PLEASE NOTE: The announcement below comes from Megamovie team member Andrew Fraknoi, and concerns Dr. Jay Pasachoff, perhaps the most prominent eclipse researcher in recent history, and a good friend/advisor to the Eclipse Megamovie Project.  Please join us in congratulating Dr. Pasachoff!

Jay Pasachoff Wins the 2019 Klumpke-Roberts Award of the ASP

 

Given for a lifetime of outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy, the Klumpke-Roberts Award of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for 2019 goes to Jay Pasachoff, Field Memorial Professor of Astronomy and Director, Hopkins Observatory, Williams College, MA, for his lifelong endeavor as a popular and scholarly communicator.

 

Jay Pasachoff’s passion for popularizing astronomy goes beyond his role as professor and researcher, touching numerous people across many generations. He has written many books for students and the public, including the popular Field Guide to the Stars and Planets, now in the 17th printing of its 4th edition; the textbook The Cosmos: Astronomy in the New Millennium, now in its 5th edition; and (with an art historian) Cosmos: The Art and Science of the Universe, a new book on the intersection of art and astronomy. He has also been the author of hundreds of articles, papers, and book chapters, instilling a love of astronomy in laypersons and students all over the world.

 

He is perhaps best known for his research and writing on solar-eclipses, a phenomenon for which he is arguably the greatest living proselytizer, having now seen and explained 35 total eclipses. His expeditions have led not only to scientific papers but also to popular articles in National Geographic, Scientific American, and elsewhere, as well as media appearances before and after many eclipses.  As one nominator put it: “It is during these moments that Jay becomes astronomy’s cheerleader-in-chief, allowing more and more people to become interested and engaged in the field.”

 

Pasachoff’s leadership roles within the profession have brought him distinction and acknowledgment – among these are his selection as one of only fifteen honorary members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, and his winning the Education Prize of the American Astronomical Society. He has also received the 2017 Richtmyer Memorial Lecture Award from the American Association of Physics Teachers and the 2012 Prix-Jules-Janssen of the Société Astronomique de France. His exuberance for sharing his passion of the universe has created many passionate astronomers and eclipse-chasers among his students.

 

In his outreach efforts, Pasachoff has directly affected millions of listeners and viewers through his radio and television interviews, including shows on PBS, the National Geographic Channel, and many other outlets. One nominator summed up how “Jay Pasachoff has devoted his entire career to fathoming the Universe while bringing all of us along with him in the endeavor. For more than a half a century, he has investigated, communicated, and educated -- and done so with success, humility, and humor.”

 

Previous winners of this prize include Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Dava Sobel and Ed Krupp. For more information, please visit https://astrosociety.org/who-we-are/awards/klumpke-roberts-award.html