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About Me

 

I'm a 50+ year urban astronomer.

 

I'm also an ex-editor of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada's, Toronto Center newsletter 'Scope.  Trained in meteorology I spent several years in Canada's extreme high-arctic launching weather balloons.  I later worked for the National Research Council's Space Research Facility launching scientific balloons some exceeding 100 meters in diameter.  I was also part of the Launch Team of Canada's scientific rocket program participating in 35 sub-orbital launches.  The program studied the edges of the atmosphere and the near-Earth space environment to 1,200km altitude.

 

Now retired I reside near the center of heavily light-polluted Toronto and its five million residents.  It is from here I pursue astro-imaging from a 9th-floor balcony using a camera-equipped 20cm SCT telescope and still marveling at the heavens.

 

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Interested in the science of SETI?  Visit my newly expanded Drake Equation at... Are We Alone?

 

Using calculators you can input your own values to calculate the number of possible ascension species, or even Earth-like planets in our galaxy. It will even calculate their estimated distances from Earth in light-years.

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You'll find it at.... Are We Alone?

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Ken Pilon

The White Zone

An Urban Astronomer's Light Pollution Guide to Balcony Imaging

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