Abstract:
A cruise ship offers a surprisingly versatile platform for observing the skies from all over the world. Jonathan Ward recently returned from several months at sea aboard the Viking Jupiter, one of Viking’s two ocean ships equipped with a state-of-the-art planetarium and telescopes. In this month’s meeting, he will discuss his ‘enrichment' role as a Viking Resident Astronomer and the excitement of discovering the stars of the Southern Hemisphere with his fellow passengers.
Speaker:
Jonathan H. Ward is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a NASA Solar System Ambassador, and a Resident Astronomer for Viking Ocean Cruises. He has written four widely-acclaimed books about the US space program. His most recent collaboration was the memoirs of astronaut Col. Eileen Collins, “Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission,” which was published in October 2021. Jonathan is the president of the Greensboro (NC) Astronomy Club.