Where in the world is Astronomy?

Here at the magazine, we get reader letters on a daily basis, from questions and suggestions to compliments and complaints (and yes, we do read them all). Occasionally, though, we get a truly unique comment that inspires us to try something new.

We received such an e-mail from longtime subscriber Tim Sisk of Bismarck, North Dakota, just a few weeks ago. He had come across the picture in our July 2010 “Letters” section of a man reading Astronomy with his 3.5-month-old grandson. The image inspired him to take one of his own, showing the staff that Astronomy isn’t just for the “animate” among us. A picture of a stuffed monkey reading the April 2007 issue (he obviously has some catching up to do) made the staff think, “We could turn this image into an entire section!”

The result is a new area in the Online Reader Gallery, “Where in the World is Astronomy?” We want readers to share pictures of the magazine in different cities around the world and/or in unusual situations. Our illustrator, Elisabeth Kelly, and I got the ball rolling on the project by taking some photos during our Memorial Day weekend trips. With Elisabeth, the magazine spent some time in Brooklyn, New York, visiting family. With me, Astronomy passed by the iconic Gateway Arch in St. Louis and posed with some of my favorite statues at my alma mater, the University of Missouri.

While visiting family in Brooklyn, New York, Astronomy Illustrator Elisabeth Kelly captured her group reading an issue outside Peter Luger steakhouse. Elisabeth Kelly photo

There’s more to come from the staff, as Assistant Editor Bill Andrews visits his native Puerto Rico this week, Associate Editor Liz Kruesi heads to MIT next week, and Senior Editor Michael E. Bakich treks to Easter Island for the solar eclipse in July. But we want to see your pictures with Astronomy as well. And it doesn’t have to be from a trip. We’d love to see the magazine in your hometown, too. For example, my goal for the next week or so is to get pictures at Miller Park (home to the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team) and by the Milwaukee Art Museum’s Quadracci Pavilion (famous for its signature wings). I may even get a picture with the Bronze Fonz. 

All in all, take the most recent issue of Astronomy with you on your next trip, snap some pictures at interesting locales, and upload them to the Online Reader Gallery. Or if you don’t have any summer (or winter in the Southern Hemisphere) travel plans, explore your city and share its treasures with other readers. I’m excited to see all the places the magazine ends up.