Biography:

Major Don Bédard joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 1990 as an officer in the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals.  After completing his Ph.D. in physics in 2013, he was assigned to serve an assistant professor of physics at the Royal Military College of Canada.  His research activities are mainly focussed on the spectrometric characterization of artificial Earth-orbiting objects.  Prior to starting his doctoral studies in 2009, he worked 7 years in the Space Systems Group at Defence Research & Development Canada in Ottawa.  Among his assignments during this time, he served as the Project Manager for the NEOSSat Technology Demonstration Project, the Project Manager for the M3MSat (JPO) and the Leader of the Space Systems Group.  Don also holds a B.Sc. (Space Science) from the Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean, an M.Sc. (Space Studies) from the University of North Dakota and he is a graduate of the 2004 International Space University’s Space Studies Program.

Biography:

Raymond Laflamme is a native of Quebec city.  He earned his PhD at Cambridge University Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics under Stephen Hawking.  He is even mentioned in Stephen Hawking’s book ‘A Brief History of Time’.

After post-doctoral fellowships in Vancouver and in Cambridge, he settled at Los Alamos National Lab until 2001 when he came to Waterloo to become the founding director of the Institute for Quantum Computing that he has lead for 15 years.  He has also been an Associate Researcher at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics since 2001.

As a pioneer in quantum information processing, he has earned Fellowships from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society and the Royal Society of Canada.  He is the recipient of J.T.Knight Prize (University of Cambridge), 1986, Top ten breakthrough of the year in the journal Science (1998), Premier Research Award, Government of Ontario (2002) the Medaille Grande Escolle de l’Association des Diplomes de l’Universite Laval (2005), Premier’s Discovery award in Natural Science and Engineering (2007), Fellow of the American Physical Society and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2011), an honorary degree from Universite de Sherbrooke (2012), a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2013), the Canadian Association of Physicist 2017 CAP-CRM prize in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics (2017) and became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2017.

He presently holds the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis “John von Neumann” Chair in Quantum Information and a Canada Research Chair in Quantum Information.  In 2010 he co-founded Universal Quantum Devices, a startup commercializing spinoffs of quantum information research and in 2015, he founded QuantumLaf Inc.

Biography:

I use telescopes on Earth and in space to study the contents of nearby galaxies.  I advocate for accessibility to science for all.

I grew up fascinated by science fiction but changed my career plans to “scientist” upon finding out about the eyesight requirements for potential astronauts.  I received degrees from the University of British Columbia and Harvard University.  After receiving my PhD, I worked at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics as part of the team responsible for building and testing the IRAC camera on the Spitzer Space Telescope.  In 2007 I joined Western’s Department of Physics and Astronomy and in 2015-18, I joined the academic leadership in the Faculty of Science as associate dean (graduate and postdoctoral studies).  In my astronomy research I’m interested in the use of computer data-mining techniques and community-developed software to facilitate knowledge extraction from astronomical data.  I’m interested in communicating science to the public and teaching computational techniques to scientists.

Biography:

Frank Dempsey has been an amateur astronomer for half a century.  Besides enjoying looking at dark skies by unaided eye and appreciating starlore, he also uses various telescopes from 80 mm to 250 mm aperture, builds telescopes and grinds mirrors, observes variable stars by visual and photometric methods, enjoys solar, planetary and all forms of deep sky observing, and enjoys being an armchair astronomer to try to keep up with the latest fascinating astronomy research.  Although his day job as a meteorologist and atmospheric scientist has occasionally interrupted with some Starfests in past years while being on duty for weekend forecasting, he has attended most Starfests during the past quarter century and realizes that Starfest is a great astronomy event worthwhile contributing to in various ways.  Being Anishinaabe and a member of Dokis First Nation in Ontario has contributed to an Indigenous perspective of the sky and helped to add insight into constellation starlore.

Biography:

Marc has been involved in amateur astronomy for over 25 years and in the Astronomy optics business since 2002.  He is currently with New Eyes Old Skies.   Marc has owned over ten different telescopes of various designs including refractors, reflectors, and Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescopes.  Marc’s main interests are double star, planetary and galaxy observing, pushing the limits of small, portable telescopes.  Marc also takes part in public observing and public outreach events through New Eyes Old Skies, The Stargazers Group of Mississauga, NYAA StarFest and the David Dunlap Observatory.

Biography:

Building and personally customizing your telescope provides personal enjoyment of a technical challenge, a method of personally customizing your telescope and can be an inexpensive way to obtain a useful telescope for many hours of viewing pleasure for you and your family.

Norm was introduced to amateur telescope making (ATMing) in 1965 after a presentation in the chemistry building of the University of Toronto and was hooked on telescope making ever since.  Over the years, he has made many scopes.  Some scopes are still unfinished, while some will never truly be finished as they can always be improved or modified.  Norm enjoys observing, but prefers to use his many talents making and testing telescopes.

Norm also enjoys bending or breaking those long standing guidelines and rules developed and shared over the decades among ATMers.  Why walk around a barrel?  Why not sit and use a lazy Susan to have the mirror and tool rotate?  Why must a tool be round?  In the early days, the tool had to be the same size and shape as the mirror blank.  Why?  Why not use grinding machines to do the work?  Thanks to John Dobson, aperture fever is curable or at least manageable and we are all better off for it.  So get out and make something that enhances your own experience.

Biography:

To discover the Universe in all its glory is a passion for Normand Fullum.  Comets, planets, objects from the deep sky, and of course, the occasional celestial phenomena have always stimulated Normand in the creation of his telescopes.  Not having studied optics or mechanical engineering at university never stopped Normand from fulfilling his dream.  Hands on experience took him to the same level as many other international companies.

Through the years, with acquired experience, Normand has built a reputation all over the world for the quality of his optics and the structure of his telescopes.  Presently, his company exports 80% of its work to the United States, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Chili, Austria, Australia, South Africa and Italy.  The care given to the quality of the products that Normand designs and builds since 1997, quickly helped the company reach new frontiers.  This distinction in the world of optics paved the way to a unique partnership with the Laval University Optics Research Centre, MESI and CRSNG — provincial and federal government organizations.  Of this partnership, a unique technology in the fusion and polishing of large optical mirrors was created.  Today, the numerous advantages of the Techno-Fusion© technology makes it possible for the company to sell at competitive prices and puts the company forefront with opportunities of substantial growth each and every year.  The Canadian leader in custom-made large optical mirror for astronomy at competitive pricing, Optiques Fullum Inc. directs its designs and manufacturing of solar hubs, surveillance telescopes (infrared and multi-spectrum) and observatories.  The company still serves the amateur and professional astronomy market.

Biography:

Andreas is one of the founders, and a Past President of the North York Astronomical Association.  In 1982, he started Starfest, and was the head ‘honcho’ for twenty six years.  He is an avid astrophotographer and telescope maker who enjoys puttering in his machine shop.  He has built several telescopes and observatories over the years.

Biography:

Dr. Graham is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Environmental Science at the University of Guelph (Guelph, Ontario, Canada) as well as the R&D Manager at the University of Guelph’s Controlled Environment Systems Research Facility (CESRF).

Dr. Graham has worked with both NASA and the University of Florida to help develop an understanding of plants to spaceflight (ISS and sub-orbital) and spaceflight analogues (parabolic flight) and how that would impact the functionality of bio-regenerative life-support systems.  He has also worked closely with the USDA and NASA to develop the first spaceflight compatible tree fruit for space applications, including radiation and microgravity counter measures.

In addition to these activities Dr. Graham spent 10 summers in the Canadian High Arctic working on the Arthur C. Clarke Mars Greenhouse in association with the Haughton Mars Project.  More recently, he has been involved with the EDEN ISS project lead by DLR (German Space Agency) that currently has a ‘bio-regenerative life-support system’ deployed at the German Neumayer Station III Antarctic Research Station.

Biography:

A child of the 60s- Star Trek, 2001: a Space Odyssey, Apollo launches at dawn.  Like many of us, Warren boldly went with his heroes ‘Where no man [had] gone before’.  He never really touched down again.  As vice-president of his middle school astronomy club, he owned an 8" Newtonian and began exploring the night sky.  By college however, the sky was forgotten for a career in music, most nights singing lead, and playing sax and flute in bright city venues, far from the dark skies of his youth in the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey. 

Beginning again with film in 1998, Warren switched to CCD cameras in 2003.  He imaged remotely from New Mexico Skies 2010-2014, and is currently a member of Star Shadows Remote Observatory (PROMPT2) at CTIO, high atop Chile's Atacama Desert.  Artistic by nature, it’s less about cosmology and CCDs, and more about the thrill of the hunt for the myriad of beautiful shapes and colors throughout the universe.  Warren’s fine art astrophotography is displayed at www.billionsandbillions.com.

When he was a child Warren was given Fred Hoyle’s book ‘Astronomy’ with a glossy, full-color photo of the Dumbbell nebula in the blackest velvet sky.  He knew from that moment he would someday photograph the heavens’ wonders.  Warren is proud to have been published as an author and photographer in Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Sky at Night, Astronomy Now, CNA Magazine (China), Amateur Astronomy, IDA's Nightscape, and AstroPhoto Insight magazines, and many places on the World Wide Web, most prestigiously NASA’s APOD.  Three large format prints were chosen for 2012’s Starstruck: The Fine Art of Astrophotography traveling exhibit, which opened at Maine's Bates College.

He was Atik CCD Camera’s North American representative, and was a consultant to Celestron where he co-designed AstroFX software.  In 2016, he wrote the definitive book on PixInsight for Springer, Inside PixInsight.  The book was Springer’s top seller in 2016, and was named a Hot Product by Sky & Telescope for 2018.  His tutorial business IP4AP.com was also named a Sky & Telescope Hot Product, and he has given thousands of clients the world over, a quick start to taking their own great images.

Biography:

Paul Klauninger is a graduate of the University of Toronto, where he studied Astronomy, Astrophysics, and Earth Sciences.  He has been passionate about astronomy since childhood and involved in astrophotography for over 30 years.  Paul has lectured on astronomy, astro-imaging, and space travel at the Canada Museum of Science & Technology as well as teaching undergrad astronomy at Carleton University.  He is currently an astronomy instructor at Algonquin College and holds workshops on astrophotography at the School of Photographic Arts in Ottawa.  Paul is a regular guest speaker on astronomical imaging at Carleton University and has also conducted astronomy workshops and school outreach activities for the Ottawa Board of Education.

Paul is an avid photographer of landscapes and the night sky, and performs much of his astro-imaging from his home observatory under the dark skies of Lanark County in eastern Ontario.  He is most passionate about imaging both transient and extreme celestial objects such as comets, auroras, eclipses, remote galaxy clusters, and gravitational lensing phenomenon.  He imaged his first comet during the 1987 apparition of Comet Halley and traveled to Barbados to catch it at closest approach.

Biography:

Guylain Rochon is a senior software engineer an avid amateur astrophotographer.  Guylain has always been passionate about photography since his early age; his first camera was a Pentax SRL back in 1984 at age 16.

Guylain is the author of the highly acclaimed astrophotography software BackyardEOS.  His passion for photography, astronomy, and strong background in software engineering collided one day and BackyardEOS was born; powerful yet simple to use astrophotography software purpose built for DSLR photography.  Guylain is also the owner of O’Telescope based out of Ottawa.

Biography:

Charlie Warren is the managing editor of Amateur Astronomy Magazine.  He is an active amateur who enjoys visual astronomy with a variety of instruments, particularly large aperture telescopes.  He is an avid astrophotographer who has imaged more than 400 deep sky objects and nightscapes, representing over two thousand hours of imaging time.  He also enjoys solar astronomy and spectroscopy.

Charlie’s interest in astronomy was initiated when 10 years old.  While cruising in the Bahamas and Virgin islands with his family, his father taught him celestial navigation with the use of a sextant, charts and ship’s chronometer.  Later while studying at Colgate University he had opportunity to observe through the nearby Cornell University observatory telescope and tag along and interview an astronomer working on refining “redshift” for galaxies in our local group.

A decade later, he invested in his first “real” telescope; a 10″ Newtonian on an equatorial mount.  His interest ignited to “obsession” following his first star party at a truly remote dark sky site.  Astronomical imaging in the late 90’s furthered his obsession.  Shortly after moving back to Orlando Florida in 2003, he began frequenting the Chiefland Astronomy Village every new moon weekend.  There he befriended resident Tom Clark, the founding editor of Amateur Astronomy Magazine.  Charlie began writing articles for the publication, and in the summer of 2007 purchased the magazine when Tom Clark retired.  Amateur Astronomy Magazine just published its 99^th quarterly issue, which is Charlie’s 45^th issue as editor.