Open Source Stargazing: A Manifesto

Stargazing is an antidote to a chaotic mind. When we look up into the night sky, we’re connecting with a human tradition that has been practiced for thousands of years. From the Aboriginals in Australia to the emperors of China, we humans have sought meanings in the twinkling points of light. What possibilities are out there? Are we watched by gods? There is nothing like stargazing in giving us a sense of perspective. It’s a sacred experience.

Sadly, most of us modern humans have lost this connection to the cosmos. Instead of looking up into the infinite, we are seduced by swiping our phones at night. What a regress! And without a guide, many of us find stars to be random dots of light -something that seem vaguely romantic but lack any relevance to our lives.

I’d love to reverse that. I’d love to see a revival of the stargazing culture.

I’d love to see various styles of stargazing flourishing all around the world, across different cultures, just like there’re different styles music. It can be romantic fairy tales like 牛郎織女的故事 or a philosophical exploration of ‘Are we alone? What possibilities are out there?’ 

There is no limit to how we can connect the dots. After all, our view of the Universe, our stories about constellations are all projections of our human imaginations. How awesome would it be if stargazing experiences can be connected with yoga, music, art, photography, romance, or even comedy! I believe that stargazing can be much more accessible than it is today. It can be a part of our life, amongst our most treasured memories. 

Let’s open source stargazing. The following are some general guidelines I’ve distilled over the last few years, for sharing an astronomy experience with the general audience. But each of us have a unique perspective, a lens through which we see and share our world. I’d love to learn how you do it.

Only share ideas that we’re genuinely excited about
Through million of years of evolution, our human mind is a filter for interesting, surprising information. If something feels boring, difficult for us to remember, chances are, it’s even more so for the general audience. So, to test what works, one strategy might be to build a funnel for intriguing ideas:

Step 1. Look at the popular astronomy videos on YouTube, and find ideas that pique our interest.
Step 2. Talk about the ideas with our friends, colleagues or audience to discover what delivery resonates emotionally.
Step 3. Build a portfolio of well-tested stories, jokes, lines that we can share with enthusiasm. 

Make ideas relevant to our personal lives
Have you ever forgotten EVERYTHING in a science lecture after only a week? I surely have. The human mind is not designed to care about random information that bears little relevance to our lives. We are all a little narcissistic!

Surprisingly, this insight first came to me from the world of art. At the White Rabbit Gallery, the retired librarian Phyllis used to run the most interesting tours on her sister’s art collection. I remember being captivated by her insider stories and theatrical delivery. Looking back, that’s probably because the tour gave me an unusual glimpse of contemporary Chinese society, and ultimately, a perspective of what it means to be human. 

How can we applied this in an astronomy experience? Whenever possible, I’d try to weave the scientific facts into an intriguing motif. For example, when showing Jupiter’s moons using a telescope, I might explore the theme of resourcefulness and use Galileo as an example of how astronomers could make big discoveries using primitive instruments. I might then use the invention of the telescope to show that there are so many invisible possibilities that are yet to be observed. And that with a unique perspective, we all have the potential to discover something extraordinary. 

An improv science experience
I used to think, ‘how can we possibly do better than the best of YouTube in science communication?’

But I was wrong! One constraint of science documentaries is that they are often scripted by producers, and don’t really embody the spirit of doing science. By that I mean the visceral feeling of exploring in the darkness, being at the frontier, with uncertainties about how things will turn out. 

I find it interesting that sometimes my audience especially appreciated a stargazing experience under challenging conditions. Perhaps because it’s more like playing a part in an adventure movie. So when sharing a stargazing experience, I’d try to improvise something new every time, depending on audience interests. This keeps the magic fresh.

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Now, you might be thinking, ‘that’s all very abstract, I want more concrete pointers. What ideas can we talk about?’ In the next post in the series, I’ll share some of my favourite themes and structures for delivering astronomy ideas. In the mean time, feel free to let me know how you go or how I can help.