Star Treks, Star Wars, and Star Domes with Jenny Powers and Elliot Severn

The LIUniverse with Dr. Charles Liu

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a science educator and work at a planetarium or science museum? Even better, to run one?

To find out, Dr. Charles Liu and co-host Allen Liu welcome Elliot Severn, the Planetarium Director at Sacred Heart University’s Discovery Science Center and Planetarium, and Jenny Powers, the Director of the Springfield Science Museum.

As always, though, we start off with the day’s joyfully cool cosmic thing that has just come down to Earth: the samples of the asteroid Bennu that were collected by the OSIRIS-REx mission! As Charles explains, these samples could give us clues about the evolution of the earliest parts of our solar system. Elliot shows us a cosmic sample of his own: his wedding ring, made from the Gibeon meteorite and actually transported back to space temporarily on Blue Origin NS22. Elliot, who is a space photographer who has been to over 20 space mission launches, was actually at the launch of OSIRIS-REx on September 8, 2016!

And then it’s time to put our guest science educators to work with our student question, from Rachelle: “Why do zodiac signs have the same names as stars?” It’s easy to imagine yourself sitting in the dark in a planetarium, looking up at the stars on the ceiling as Planetarium Director Elliot talks about the constellations in the path of the Ecliptic, and all 13 constellations in the Zodiac. (Yes, there are 13 – but we’ll let Elliot explain why.) He also explains that constellations tend to have Latin names but some of the brightest stars have Arabic names.

Charles and Jenny talk about how we are all connected under the night sky. She explains how her museum is making astronomy more accessible to people by bringing different cultural perspectives into their exhibits. Jenny also describes how they are developing techniques to help people with low or no sight, who can’t simply go outside and look up, appreciate the stars through tactile exhibits and the use of sound.

Elliot, who is also an Astronomy Professor at SHU, describes getting his first telescope at 9 years old and learning how to use it with the help of the members of the Booth Park Astronomy Club in Stratford, Ct. He also talks about Sidewalk Astronomy, where you bring telescopes to public places to let people discover the wonders of the stars free of charge. Elliot shares about his friendship with amateur astronomer John Dobson, the inventor of the Dobsonian telescope who is credited with vastly increasing the numbers of amateur astronomers and popularizing Sidewalk Astronomy.

Jenny talks about her journey from education department and family engagement coordinator to museum director, and how her experiences with her astronomy mentor Richard Sanderson led her to fall in love with planetariums, their technology, and their histories. Jenny and Elliot get a little geeky talking about their various projectors and domes, from original, historically important equipment to modern, digital systems and virtual reality.

Of course, this being The LIUniverse, we end up in a discussion about Star Trek and Star Wars, with Charles encouraging Elliot and Jenny to explain which they prefer and why. (Tune in to hear Charles’ impression of Darth Vader.) Elliot champions Star Trek, and also runs us through why this is a golden age for Trek fans, with a plethora of new series to enjoy. Jenny, on the other hand, is on Team Star Wars, and uses the opportunity to point out that the “science” in Star Trek is often... not.

To find out more about Jenny’s work, visit springieldmuseums.org or catch up with the Museum on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.

For Elliot, visit SHUdiscovery.org, and check them out on social media, especially Facebook.

And of course, you can find either of them in real life by visiting their institutions.

We hope you enjoy this episode of The LIUniverse, and, if you do, please support us on Patreon.

Credits for Images Used in this Episode:

– SHU Discovery Science Center and Planetarium – Elliot Severn, used with permission

– Springfield Science Museum – Daderot via Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain

– The OSIRIS-REx sample being recovered – NASA/Keegan Barber, Public Domain

– Illustration of the Ecliptic in Aquarius – Johann Elert Bode, Public Domain

– Galileo Galilei – Justus Sustermans

– Passage tomb in Knowth, Ireland, home to 5000-year-old Moon drawings – Jemartin03, CC BY 2.0