Mr. Jay Ryan and wife Debbie

1)  How did you first get interested in astronomy?

I was a kid during the Space Race in the 1960s and was 8 when Neil and Buzz first landed on the Moon.  All kids were interested in space back in those days,  especially the boys.  When I was 7, my schoolteacher showed our class how to find the constellations Orion and Taurus.  Since then, I’ve always known those constellations and a couple others like the Big Dipper, but didn’t really know much more about astronomy.  When I was 28 in 1989, I got seriously involved in astronomy as an adult hobby.  I made a telescope and began the learning program in astronomy that led to the present.

2)  What is the most exciting thing you have seen in the sky?

In 1989, the event that really kicked off my excitement was seeing a conjunction of Jupiter and Mars in Taurus, one of the few constellation that I knew at the time.  It was exciting to actually see planets for the first time!  Since then, I’ve seen some very exciting meteor showers and some beautiful lunar eclipses.  Also, Comet Hyakutake in 1996 and Comet Hale-Bopp were very exciting, since we may not see another “great comet” for another 100 years.

3)  What is your favorite planet?

While it’s fun to see Saturn’s rings through a telescope, I really like Jupiter the best.  It was the first planet I saw through a telescope.  It’s fun to watch Jupiter’s moons move around from night to night.  Jupiter is very bright in the night sky and hard to miss.

4)  What kind of equipment do you use to look at the night sky?

I mostly just look with my unaided eyes.  Sometimes I’ll use binoculars and rarely I’ll drag out the telescope.  In my opinion, telescopes are expensive and overrated.

5)  Why is it important to study astronomy?

It’s important to understand the techniques of timekeeping and navigation, as have been done for millennia.  Even if we use clocks and other instruments today, there is still value in understanding the traditional techniques, especially if the gadgets ever break.  Also, the sky is a very beautiful part of God’s creation.  The planets are easily visible to anyone who bothers to look.  We are living in a “dark age” of astronomy understanding and appreciation.  Most people today are not even aware that the planets are the brightest “stars” in the sky, visible on any clear night.  The media and the schools today have neglected this part of our
education.

6)  What is classical astronomy?

Classical Astronomy is the traditional approach to astronomy, as mentioned above.  It is the pre-telescopic method of observing the sky.  It is different from “modern astronomy” which is the approach of using telescopes and space probes to learn about obscure objects in space, such as black holes and exo-planets.  Classical astronomy has been studied since ancient times and was still an important part of education in early America.  The colonial almanacks were an important resource in classical astronomy that were read by everyone, from educated professors to simple farmers.

7)  Would you mind telling us a little about the curriculum you wrote?

Signs & Seasons is a Biblical homeschool curriculum for helping homeschoolers learn the traditional methods of observing the sky.  The students will learn to observe the constellations, and understand the cycles of the Sun, Moon and planets.  In the process, the students will gain an understanding for astronomical basis of timekeeping, the cycles of the Day, the Month, and the Year.  The students will also learn the basics of finding direction from the Sun, Moon and stars.  We have also released a companion workbook to Signs & Seasons that will enable older students to establish high school credit.  Through the Signs & Seasons program, we hope that a generation of Christian homeschoolers will reclaim an understanding of the sky for Jesus.