Category: Newsletter

Pascal Lee Conveys Condolences via Email

Pascal Lee (NASA/SETI/Mars Institute), who presented to SMCAS at our May and March meetings, and many other times in the past 10 years, sends his condolences to Ken’s family and the SMCAS community.Marion Begin forwarded message:  From: Pascal Lee <pascal.lee@marsinstitute.net> Subject: Re: Sad News – Ken Lum memorial Date: May 20, 2025 at 11:51:59 PM PDTTo: Marion […]

Saying Farewell to Dr. Ken Lum 

By Chanan Greenberg Building upon Mike’s earlier post about Ken, I had the honor and pleasure of knowing Ken for 22 years. From our first interactions, I was in awe of his extensive knowledge and the caliber of his astronomy equipment — far beyond my reach at the time. I quickly discovered that Ken was […]

Goodbye

It’s time to say goodbye. I will be leaving the SMCAS Board of Directors at the end of May. My wife and I are taking our first step towards retirement and moving to Genoa, Nevada. It was a tough decision to leave the Bay Area, but the spreadsheet said I would have to work a […]

My Favorite Astronomer: Loki Ingalls

By: Loki Ingalls My favorite astronomer is Charles Messier. I love the story of the Messier objects; it’s really funny to me how seemingly random objects that he numbered are now incredibly popular objects for many astronomers to view and astrophotographers to capture. It’s really crazy how one person can make such a big impact! […]

Gearing Up for a Stellar Summer

Greetings to the Society,  Summer Ho! As spring winds down and summer begins, let’s hope for more clear skies than cloudy ones! Warmer weather brings more opportunities for stargazing—and for getting involved with the club. It’s also time to start thinking about elections for a new Board of Directors. Have you considered becoming more active […]