Amateur Astronomy – the next generation? In the 1960s and 70s astronomy did not have the competition from computer games, internet and TV. That apparently is what is keeping the young people away from participating in astronomy. Guy Fennimore, secretary of the Society for Popular Astronomy (SPA), suggests that astronomy is not the only victim and describes the SPA’s “young stargazers initiative”.
Roger Pickard, the president of the British Astronomical Association, recounts the days of committed amateurs who made the telescopes they used and asserts the ongoing strong relationship between amateur and professional astronomers.
This recording took place at Astrofest 2008, apologies for the occasional noisy background.
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