Member Spotlight - Tim Cowden - BVAC President

I was born in California and I have lived in Texas since I was sixteen. In between I've lived in the Philippines and Hawaii courtesy of my dad's job with the Army Air Force Exchange Service (the people who run the PX). I graduated from A&M in 1979 and got a temporary job at the Cyclotron Institute at A&M until I figured out what I wanted to do in life. I'm still there, building computer control systems for atom smashers.

Early Interest in Telescopes

When we lived in the Philippines, my parents bought me a telescope. It was the standard 80 mm sized refractor that gets a bad rap, but I could see the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter. I always wanted a better scope and the opportunity to buy a used 10 inch dob came my way in 2006. I kept it in upright my living room where it looked like a water heater. Mark Spearman's wife was visiting my wife and recognized the telescope. She told me that Mark was having a star party at his house and that I should take my scope out there. The rest is history.

Different Scopes for Observing

I have several scopes that I have built or rehabilitated. I like big refractors for planets, big dobs for deep sky and easy to carry scopes for grab and go situations. My problem is I never get rid of a scope, except to loan them out occasionally. And I keep building telescopes. It may be more fun than looking through them.

Searching for Parts

I like to wander through stores like Home Depot or Bed Bath and Beyond and think of alternate uses of things. This is why one of my scopes has a wire mesh waste paper basket as part of the tube and a flower pot for the base. A great deal of the raw material to build a scope come from what other people throw away. I've acquired wood, aluminum tubing and nuts and bolts this way. Then I tinker with the design. The Internet is full of interesting designs.

A usual night at the scope revolves around testing the latest scope modification. Will it work or is it back to the workbench? At dark sky sites, I try to see things I've never seen before. Observing programs are good guides for that. Then there are special events like a close approach of Mars or a meteor shower.

Impressive Observations

The most impressive astronomical object I ever saw was Comet Bennet in 1971. It was a bright comet that spread across 10 degrees of sky. The biggest thrill through the eyepiece was when I aimed my ten inch scope at the Orion Nebula and saw the Trapezium for the first time. Or maybe the Great Red Spot on Jupiter. Omega Centauri? Dang, I can't make up my mind.

My advice for anyone just starting in astronomy is to join a club and look through other people's telescopes. Follow that up with a star chart and a pair of binoculars and learn the night sky. After that you'll have a good idea of what you want to do next.