| Steve Edberg, NASA, JPL Scientist: Science Award |
Steve Edberg is an active astronomical observer, photographer, and telescope maker. He started observing seriously in 1965 with meteors. His interests have expanded since then to observing everything: the Sun, eclipses, planets, stars, deep sky objects, and comets and meteors, though he presently concentrates on transient phenomena. In his garage he has built telescopes, spectrographs, a meteor chopper, and numerous other observing aids. Professionally, Steve is fortunate to have turned his avocation into his vocation. During the summers of his college (U. C. Santa Cruz) and graduate school (U. C. San Diego and U.C.L.A.) years, Steve observed the Sun at observatories in Colorado, Arizona, California, Hawaii, and New Mexico, studying magnetic fields in active regions, prominences, and the solar corona. He also investigated extragalactic objects from Siding Spring Observatory and the Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory. He began working full time at San Fernando Observatory in 1978 before moving to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1979. Now a project Investigation Scientist at JPL, he has worked on Galileo, Cassini, Comet Rendezvous/Asteroid Flyby, and SIM Lite. Steve enjoys being a facilitator of the science studies made by spacecraft. He has planned measurements for execution on spacecraft in flight, coordinated competing science investigations during the planning stages, and specified science requirements for spacecraft early in the design phase. Steve’s photography, research, instruments, and writing have appeared in Solar Physics, The Astrophysical Journal, Space Science Reviews, and in other professional journals, NASA Facts, and in Sky and Telescope, Astronomy, Telescope Making, Griffith Observer, Sky and Space, Journal of the British Astronomical Association, Weather, Rangefinder, and other periodicals, and in several books including Collins’ how to identify Night Sky, Wild Guide Night Sky, Collins Guide to the Night Sky, and Gem Weather Photoguide. He co-authored with David Levy Observing Comets, Asteroids, Meteors, and the Zodiacal Light, published by Cambridge University Press. Steve has a strong interest in bringing astronomy into the classroom and various aspects of astronomical research to his fellow amateurs. He has published numerous classroom activities related to planetary science, space science, and astronomy. These and others may be found at http://eis.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini_epo/education/edu-58-kitchen.cfm and at http://pumas.nasa.gov . He served as Coordinator for Amateur Observations for the International Halley Watch from 1981-1989. Steve has been honored by the International Astronomical Union with the naming of a minor planet, 3672 Stevedberg, and has been awarded a NASA Exceptional Service Medal and JPL Award for Excellence for his work in outreach. Carter Observatory in New Zealand named him Carter Memorial Lecturer in 2001. He rides either a road or a recumbent bicycle for recreation and commuting and enjoys observing nature and keeping up with developments in a wide variety of scientific fields. |
