Three Decades on the Front Lines of Astrophysics

Author Michael Lemonick will discuss his three decades on the front lines of astrophysics at the next meeting of the Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton on Tuesday, April 9, at 8 p.m. in Peyton Hall on the Princeton University Campus. Admission is free and the public is welcome.

Ample free parking is available across the street from Peyton Hall.

For people who love the universe but don't have in interest in getting a Ph.D., there are two principal ways to stay involved: become an amateur astronomer; or become a journalist who covers the topic.

Mr. Lemonick says, "I'm not great with staying up late, enduring the cold or tinkering with delicate equipment, so I've gone with the latter."

He will talk about how it's taken him all over the world, and given him the extraordinary opportunity to meet and talk with some of the world's leading scientists.

Copies of Mr. Lemonick's latest book, Mirror Earths, about the race to find Earth-like planets will be available for purcahse and signing.

Neil deGrasse Tyson said of the book, "Leave it to veteran science journalist Michael Lemonick to not only capture the science behind the search for exoplanets, but to eavesdrop on the occasionally quirky lives of the planet hunters themselves.”

Michael Lemonick is the senior staff writer at Climate Central and a former senior science writer at Time magazine. He has also written for Discover magazine, Yale Environment 360, Scientific American, and others, and has written a number of popular-level books on science and astrophysics, including The Georgian Star, Echo of the Big Bang, and Other Worlds: The Search For Life in the Universe.

A native of Princeton, Lemonick earned degrees at Harvard University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He teaches communications and journalism at Princeton University. He currently resides in Princeton with his wife Eileen Hohmuth-Lemonick, a photographer and photography instructor at Princeton Day School.

About the Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton:

The Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton is an organization of over 80 members with interest in all aspects of astronomy and space science. Founded in 1962, the AAAP promotes a wide range of astronomy-related activities including: solar, planetary and deep-sky observing, astrophotography, star parties, lectures and education.

The group owns and operates two observatories in NJ at Washington Crossing State Park and Jenny Jump State Park. Members include avid observers, armchair investigators and complete novices. All share a common love of the sky.

Complete meeting details and directions are found at the AAAP web site: www.princetonastronomy.org. Sidereal Times, the association newsletter with information on club activities, is online at princetonastronomy.wordpress.com/. On Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/cb7oqvk