The College mission is to guide and assist its students in their intellectual, personal, and ethical development both for the enrichment of their individual lives and for meaningful participation in society. It is also to generate and disseminate knowledge and to provide public and cultural services to the City and State of New York.

The function of our Astrophysical Observatory, located at the only public college on Staten Island, is to support the college in its fulfillment of that mission by making accessible to the students, the residents of this Island and neighboring metropolitan areas, an active dedicated on-going educational opportunity that speaks to some of the excitement of the future, some of the inherent questions of our past, and some of the environmental needs of the present.

On the Nature of the Astrophysical Observatory

Part I

Firstly, the observatory is the highlight of an extended laboratory component of the C.S.I. Astronomy program which serves a significant population of the liberal arts and science majors. The large number of students choosing the study of Astronomy is a reflection of their interest in the fundamental questions of existence. Astronomy casts these inquiries in a scientific context and by its nature, presents the romantic aspect of science in its investigations. Students in the program are able to explore first hand the general characteristics of our Solar System, our Milky Way Galaxy and other Galaxies.

The observatory contributes to an enrichment of one's life by focusing one's thoughts on the modern cosmic perspective. Historically, the progress of a civilization is intimately connected to the cosmological model adopted by a society. The observatory which presents the current viewpoints of our universe will help students free themselves from the yoke of fear and superstition which seems to have gained a strong grip on our culture over the last few decades.

The second charge of the observatory is to provide a link up with the local community. There are several aspects to the public function now implemented or under consideration, namely:

1. Once a week for most of the year we are currently open to the general public with special emphasis of supporting the Astronomy observing sessions of the College of Staten Island Astronomy classes. Please refer to our observing schedule for more information.

2. A special monthly public program of general observations; to be offered jointly with the Staten Island branch of the Amateur Astronomer's Association is being planned.

3. A program under way for students at local high schools to be invited to participate in special sky observing offerings, as well as, to work in some of the research projects described in Part II of this document.

4. The observatory's main computer, a SUN work station, is a general resource center for astronomical and earth science images and programs that can be reached via the internet and has already opened for public access via our Homepage. This astronomical Home Page has been setup to be a Gateway to the world of Astronomy on the Internet.

The third major commitment at the observatory is to do astronomical research with our undergraduate students. To date we have state of the art equipment partially funded by Grants from the National Science Foundation and the New York State Graduate Research Initiative Program. Our student researchers have been supported by the Diamond Fellowship Program(DFP), the CUNY Pipeline Program and the New York City Alliance for Minority Participation(AMP) in Science, Engineering and Mathematics. The DFP and AMP programs are closing and we hope to obtain future support of our students for a variety of projects by NASA and benefactor grants.

The targeted telescopic research areas are variable star work, solar system monitoring, asteroid positions, asteroid rotation periods and near-earth asteroid searching.

The observatory's Radio Astronomy antennas can monitor Polar and Geo-Stationary satellites and a new 12 foot radio dish being installed will participate in the world wide SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) Project. Students who use the Radio Equipment can learn Satellite communications, meteorology from space, Monitor radio sources from space like the Sun, Jupiter, Centaurus-A and maybe get a message from "ET".

Undergraduates in Engineering, Physics, Computer Science and Earth Science are participating in acquiring and analyzing image data for professional and community publication. Approximately 30 engineering and physics students have already undertaken and completed advanced Astrophysical projects over the past four years.

Also refer to Observatory Overview from the Director
for Part II of this document.