SMC Planetarium Hosts Space Talks
Illustration by Sam Plascencia | The Corsair
Santa Monica College’s (SMC) planetarium continues its free weekly Friday night shows with senior lecturer James (Jim) Mahon. Each week, Mahon hosts two shows on Friday.
The Night Sky show at 7 p.m. is composed of 30 minutes of programming and a 30-minute question and answer session. This dives into an overview of astronomy and space exploration. The second show, at 8 p.m., focuses on a specific current event within astronomy.
Topics covered include upcoming stars and planets observable with the naked eye, space-bound vessel launches and test launches, aerospace technology and engineering, and recent discoveries. The lecture is supplemented with beautiful photographs and insightful video content that is engaging for viewers, no matter their education or background.
“What I learned early on was I like sharing it with people because the big rush for me was seeing somebody's head explode when they saw the spiral structural structure in a galaxy with their eyes,” said Mahon, who has been with SMC’s Planetarium for over 15 years. “I completely do the planetarium shows for the love of it. It's a total passion that I do not get rich [from]. It's just I get a complete buzz,” Mahon said.
The show, happening this Friday, March 11, at 8 p.m., features an overview of SpaceX, and each Friday in March will feature a unique topic after the Night Sky Show.
The lectures are free, appropriate for all ages, and engaging. The show is informal and attendees are encouraged to participate, comment, and ask questions. “We try to get a sense from the chat stream of where people's interests are, so we keep one eye on that and kind of tailor what I'm talking about,” said Mahon.
When the program was still on campus, the planetarium hosted star parties on the top floor of SMC’s parking structures. “I set up some telescopes, because there is an immediacy to eyeball to the eyepiece. I mean, Saturn in the eyepiece is different from Saturn on a video screen...to me, that's a very visceral personal experience. And I like to do that," said Mahon.
Mahon is also an advocate for more women in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). A lot of his audience members over the years are elementary-age girls. “I mean, girls, we desperately need you. And don't let anybody tell you that girls can't do science and math and engineering. Because excluding 50% of the human race, from any endeavor, is really idiotic," said Mahon.
He also does his part to include representation of accomplished women in astronomy. “I make a point of showing female astronauts on the space station,” said Mahon.
The online shows will continue until the campus reopens, after which there will be bigger and more elaborate shows. Currently, the astronomy department is set to receive extensive upgrades, according to Mahon. “We're going to have a nice 4k Fulldome laser system and we will have an observatory dome on the roof with a very cool telescope.”
Mahon embraces attendees regardless of their understanding of astronomy. It's a welcoming space that invites the audience to discover more about astronomy by following their innate curiosity.
