Herman Heyn, December 16, 1930 - February 17, 2021

15 views
Skip to first unread message

Jim Johnson

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 2:44:23 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com

Dear HAL officers, members and guests,

 

I regret to bring you the sad news of Herman Heyn’s passing last night, February 17th. We have lost a legend and a friend, and we will miss him dearly.

 

Herman, a giant among astronomy public outreach enthusiasts such as we, was among the most ardent supporters of HAL’s public outreach mission. He though so highly of HAL that last fall he donated to us a key document related to his legacy. In this regard, HAL President Phil Whitebloom will be making an important announcement at tonight’s HAL meeting.

 

Sincerely,

Jim Johnson

 

 

Herman Heyn Biography

 

Herman Heyn is a distinguished amateur astronomer known for his passion in sharing astronomy with the public. His interest in astronomy was inspired by his 8th grade Garrison Junior High School science teacher, Ms. Wicker, after completing an assignment to find the Big Dipper.

 

His first telescope, a 3” Mogey refractor, was purchased by his father just after World War II.  Later, other interests as a young adult postponed his return to astronomical pursuits. Herman returned to the hobby with the arrival of the Leonids Meteor Shower in 1966 and purchased another 3” Refractor which he upgraded to an 8” Schmidt-Cassegrain Reflector in 1981.

 

Herman became widely known as Baltimore's Street Corner Astronomer after he began setting up his telescope in Fells Point to bring views of the night sky to the public in 1987. Three decades and 2,858 sessions later, he set up his telescope for the last time on October 20, 2018.

 

Many amateur astronomers, including current and former Howard Astronomical League members Steve Rifkin and Teresa Palomar, have been inspired by Herman to engage in the hobby in a serious fashion, and to share it with the public.

 

During one of his sidewalk sessions, Herman noticed while aligning his telescope mount with true north that Baltimore's street grid did not align exactly with true north. Following his curiosity, he discovered that the grid alignment was off by about three degrees, which was the difference between magnetic north and true north at the time that Baltimore's streets were laid out in 1730.

 

Herman's sidewalk astronomy was covered many times in Baltimore area newspaper articles, and he has been published several times in Sky & Telescope magazine.

 

 

20161117_185249.jpg

Steve Rifkin

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 2:50:49 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com, Jim Johnson
Oh no!  I am so saddened to hear this.  Herman was a dear friend.  He even helped me pick out my first real telescope.  He was even a guest at my wedding.  I just saw and spoke with him recently on his birthday.  I feel horrible.

Jim, thank you for passing on the information.  Herman will certainly be missed.  What a great, stand-up guy.  He did such a great service for Baltimoreans, showing so many of them their first close-up glimpses of the cosmos.  RIP, Herman, my friend.

Steve Rifkin
stev...@erols.com
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anyone posting topics not related to astronomy or the Howard Astronomical League will be moderated immediately and without notice. Obvious spammers will be banned.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Howard Astronomical League" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to howardastro...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/howardastro/3b55bc5a5da64f5fa0f4bd6d33576870%40jrjohnson.net.

Cheryl Kerr

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 2:57:14 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com
Thank you Jim. This is very sad news. My condolences to his family who he loved dearly and, to everyone in HAL who were close to him over these last many years. 

I am so glad to have seen his presentation to the general meeting a couple years ago and to help facilitate the acquisition of his beloved viewing logs when gifted to HAL last fall. 
Cheryl Kerr
 

Robert Prokop

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 3:15:31 PM2/18/21
to Chas Rimpo' via Howard Astronomical League
Back when I lived in Fells Point, I would pass by Herman several nights a week, as he showed off the moon and planets to anyone who would stop by. His sign "HAVA LOOK" was practically part of the landscape on Broadway Square. I doubt if anyone has ever heard as many "Wow"s and "Ooh"s as Herman did.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/howardastro/CAAtLUTqm5ngT5f1y35deqmvkfDGokzSgH-urGGkFT7YcyaiL6w%40mail.gmail.com.

Alin Tolea

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 3:17:30 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com
Devastating news :(. 

Alin

--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anyone posting topics not related to astronomy or the Howard Astronomical League will be moderated immediately and without notice. Obvious spammers will be banned.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Howard Astronomical League" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to howardastro...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/howardastro/3b55bc5a5da64f5fa0f4bd6d33576870%40jrjohnson.net.


--
Alin Tolea, Ph.D.

NASA JPSS Ground Systems Integration Engineer

office phone: (240) 684 0930



Jay Berg

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 3:26:47 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com
Dear Hal members:

I do not subscribe to The Sunpapers.  So I was wondering if any member does, could that person cut and paste his obituary on an Email?  I am certain that one will be published.  

He was an iconic and beloved Baltimore treasure and so sorry he has passed! Herman is now certainly amongst the stars that he graciously shared with so many of us for so long. 

Thanks!

Jay Berg 

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 18, 2021, at 3:17 PM, Alin Tolea <alin...@gmail.com> wrote:



Jim Tomney

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 3:41:45 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com

Very sad new indeed. he was a legend around here and well known in the astronomy community at large. His continual outreach to the public touched many people and likely helped launch careers in astronomy or science for many who looked through his scope. Thankful I had the opportunity to have many interactions with him over the years. He will be missed.

 

Jim

--

Teresa Palomar

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 4:56:41 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com
Thank you for this news, Jim, sad as it is. I became an amateur astronomer the instant I saw Saturn through Herman’s telescope. For my next birthday after that, my wife bought me my first scope. For a few years, I would occasionally join Herman at Harborplace or Fells Point, so that he could show more than one sight more easily. He was leery about it at first, since he used donations as income, but when folks looked through my scope and asked where my hat was, I pointed back at Herman’s. He soon began encouraging my presence. We became good friends, and I will miss him a great deal.
Teresa

Teresa Palomar

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 4:58:12 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com


On Feb 18, 2021, at 12:57 PM, Cheryl Kerr <cheryl...@gmail.com> wrote:

Steve Rifkin

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 5:05:09 PM2/18/21
to howar...@googlegroups.com, Teresa Palomar
Teresa, that is a nice photo of Herman.  Do you recall where/when/at what event that was taken?

Steve

Robert Prokop

unread,
Feb 18, 2021, 7:09:15 PM2/18/21
to Chas Rimpo' via Howard Astronomical League, Teresa Palomar
It looks like the Waverley Farmers' Market.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/howardastro/f8e9becf-e378-cc74-f41c-e257a7dfac69%40erols.com.
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages