By: Andrew Mrozowski
Big cities are beautifully illuminated at night, however one drawback is that it’s not often you can look up at the night sky and see constellations and planets. Hamilton is unique as it not only features a lot of green spaces that set the scene perfectly for stargazers, but also has a dedicated group of astronomers to keep the interest as alive as the stars in the sky.
One group that takes advantage of the clear, starry nights is the Hamilton Amateur Astronomers. The non-profit organization is the Canada’s largest independent astronomy club and is made up of 200 members who range from beginner to expert level astronomers.
“We strive to further not just the understanding of this fascinating science but also, and most importantly, the enjoyment of it,” said John Gauvreau, chair of the HAA.
Through free monthly events, the HAA holds meetings that are open to the public. At each of these events, a speaker showcases a presentation on astronomy or a related topic.
January 20/21 lunar eclipse shot during maximum at approximately 12:14AM from #BurlON. #LunarEclipse2019 #HamOnt #moon pic.twitter.com/VduPvVh3KK
— HAA (@HAATweet) January 21, 2019
Kevin Salwach, a member of the HAA since 2009, presented A Step Back and a Look Up on March 8. Since the event was catered towards the general public, Salwach dropped all technical aspects of astronomy and highlighted the importance of amateur astronomy. He encouraged attendees to take a look at the bigger picture of the universe.
“I find stargazing to be one of the most humbling and relaxing hobbies out there. There is something about sitting under a clear, dark sky that brings me complete peace of mind,” said Salwach.
Starting from a young age, Salwach found himself fascinated with the world of astronomy after visiting the William J. McCallion Planetarium at the Burke Science Building on campus.
“I remember the student doing the presentation pointing out Orion’s belt on the projector, and then going home later that night and seeing the belt in the night sky with my own eyes got me hooked. I’ve been going back every Wednesday ever since,” said Salwach.
Originally opening in 1954, the Planetarium was the conception of William McCallion, a professor in the department of physics and astronomy. Before finding its permanent home in the basement of BSB in room 149, an old war-surplus parachute was hung from the ceiling and used as a planetarium dome. The planetarium was the first of its kind in Ontario to offer public shows.
Featuring two shows every Wednesday night, graduate students who are studying astronomy create and design a one-hour show on the topic of their choice.
Two upcoming shows at the planetarium are based on pop-culture. One show is set around the Star Trek universe. Attendees will be taken around the universe to explore different stellar objects and phenomenon that have been featured in the show. The other is set around the theme of Harry Potter as many names of the book’s characters are inspired by the field of astronomy.
For PhD candidate and manager of the planetarium, Ian Roberts, the space has become a second home during his time at McMaster.
“For me, I think it’s a totally unique experience — something that you are not going to get a chance to do in many places, to come in here when a show is going, it’s totally dark [in the room],”said Roberts. “The first time the night sky comes up, it is completely amazing. It’s very striking. Getting the opportunity to come to a facility like this is something that is super unique.” he added.
Between the McCallion Planetarium at McMaster as well as the numerous other events that the Hamilton Amateur Astronomers run every month, there is room for anybody to study the night sky, whether they have a general interest or are aspiring astronomers themselves.
“Anyone can go out and take a look at the night sky, it belongs to all of us. Especially for a university student who is bogged down with study and schoolwork, stargazing is a nice repose to the stress of school,” said Salwach.
There’s a lot of life down here on Earth, but if you take a look up, you will be introduced to a brand-new world filled with wonder and awe that is sure to strike your curiosity.
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UTS has finalized its plans to upgrade campus Wi-Fi in several high-priority areas. The $100,000 pilot project will occur gradually over the next few months, and is expected to be finished by May of this year. The project was first announced in November.
A total of 90 Wi-Fi access points will be either upgraded or added to 12 buildings on campus.
According to John Kearney, chief information officer with UTS, the process of expanding Wi-Fi should be “invisible” but “in some cases there may be momentary pauses in service.”
Classrooms, conference rooms and lounges have been identified as top priority areas.
A list of building upgrades is below:
DeGroote School of Business
UPGRADE: B105, B106, B107
Kenneth Taylor Hall
NEW: B104, B105, B102, B135
UPGRADE: B110, B121, B123
Togo Salmon Hall
NEW: B105, B106, B107, B120, B126, B128, B130, B125, B180, 122,187, 512
UPGRADE: TwelvEighty
Chester New Hall
NEW: B107, 102, 106, 104
UPGRADE: B180, 183
Alumni Memorial Building
NEW: B130, B130/E, B130/A
McMaster University Student Centre
NEW: Everywhere
Gilmour Hall
NEW: 108
UPGRADE: B107, B109, Council Chambers, 203, 206, 212
ABB
NEW: 136, 162
Psychology Building
NEW: 151,155
UPGRADE: 180
Art Gallery
UPGRADE: Everywhere
Burke Science Building
NEW: B119, B103, B155, B135, B136, B139, B142, 119,120, 117, 121, 115, 108, 106, 137, 138, 145, 147
John Hodgins Engineering Building
264, 376
The MSU is bringing back the #WheresTheWifi hashtag after partnering with UTS on a $100,000 Wi-Fi pilot project on campus.
New surveys on the MSU’s website and Facebook page were released Monday to gather feedback on which areas of campus are most in need of Wi-Fi.
Huzaifa Saeed, VP (Education), who sits on the Wi-Fi working group and is spearheading this year’s pilot project, says it’s an important step towards a larger-scale initiative.
The Wi-Fi working group consists of UTS, CLL, Library, Facility Services and the Registrar.
“I will be reporting to UTS later this week, and we will work out where we can spend the money,” said Saeed.
“I think it’s important for students to contribute, especially since Wi-Fi was such a big issue in the last [MSU] election,” he said.
In less than 24 hours, over 600 votes were casted on the MSU’s channels. So far, the Burke Science Building and Student Centre seem to be where most students have identified the greatest need for Wi-Fi.
The survey on the MSU’s website differs from the one on Facebook, providing a longer list of choices and asking for student satisfaction with Wi-Fi on campus.
Mukhtar Galan, current SRA representative (Engineering), ran with the slogan ‘Where’s the Wi-Fi?’ in his presidential campaign this past January.
Galan said he is very supportive of the pilot project and student poll.
“There are a lot of empty tables and study spaces on campus that can’t be used because there’s no Internet connection,” he said. “We have good space, we just need to optimize it.”
“I was surprised to hear from so many first-years last year that they couldn’t connect to Wi-Fi in some common rooms,” said Galan. “I think that’s a problem.”
However, the cost to expand Wi-Fi in residences is closer to $500,000, says Saeed, so it wouldn’t be feasible as part of the pilot project.
“After the project, [the MSU] will be submitting a multi-million dollar proposal to the University for Wi-Fi upgrades on campus,” Saeed said.
UTS’s website states that areas eligible for University funding are public gathering areas for students where there is seating or workspace. This includes lobbies, libraries and lounges.
‘Out of scope’ areas for Wi-Fi funding by UTS are classrooms, administrative areas, and faculty and staff offices. Wi-Fi improvements for these areas can be secured through departmental or project funding if available.
Discussions to improve Wi-Fi on campus, in addition to other technological services on campus, have been ongoing for years.
Last year, MSU President Matthew Dillon-Leitch and executives worked to get UnivMail undergraduate e-mail accounts migrated to Google.
The University’s ERP (enterprise resource planning) project was also announced last year. The purpose of the five-year project is to modernize and streamline McMaster’s outdated business processes.
The initiative entered the ‘fit-gap’ stage earlier this month. During this stage, members of the implementation team will examine how the selected PeopleSoft software fits McMaster’s business process needs, and where there are gaps.
