Fond farewells and new beginnings

Stuart Clark Editor

Like so many in the astronomical community, I was stopped in my tracks when the news of Allan Chapman’s passing reached me. His association with this magazine goes back decades, and it is safe to say that these pages will never be the same again. In this issue, you will find his last article for us and an appreciation of his life and work. Only a few weeks ago, Allan sent me the list of articles he wanted to write next. I am extremely sad that I will no longer be able to read those or share them with you. On behalf of everyone at Astronomy Now, I extend our sincerest condolences to Rachel Chapman and all who knew Allan.

It has been just over six months since Nebula Press Ltd took over Astronomy Now . On one hand, it feels like no time at all and yet, on another, it feels like I’ve always been here and the 20 years since my last stint as editor have melted into nothing.

Thank you to everyone who has written in to express how much they like the changes we are making, and to offer their suggestions for further improvements. We know that Astronomy Now must appeal to a broad a range of stargazers, amateurs and armchair astronomers. Therefore, we have been experimenting with styles of articles and topics to see what lands with you and, just as importantly, what doesn’t. We are now ready to take the next steps and would like your help.

As we continue to develop the look and feel of the magazine – nothing too radical I promise! – we would love to convene a readers’ group to run ideas past and get feedback. Nothing onerous is planned, just a zoom meeting or two every now and again to show you ideas, solicit feedback or just to catch up and see how you think we’re doing. This will help immensely as we head towards our 40th anniversary next year, and set the magazine up for its next 40 years (although I’ll have to be older than William Shatner to still be in charge by then)! So, if you fancy joining our ad-hoc readers group – perhaps we should call it the ‘Astronomy Now irregulars’? – send us an email to yourspace@astronomynow.com and put Astronomy Now irregulars in the subject line.

Finally, as Astronomy Now went to print, a matter of some personal and historical importance came to light. I am thrilled to print this recently unearthed image of Victorian astronomer Richard Carrington. I wrote my book The Sun Kings about him and his discovery of solar flares; and I always lamented that no photo of him survived. Now, however, thanks to the super detective work of Kate Bond, assistant archivist at the Royal Astronomical Society, the long lost photo has been found. We will have the full story next month.

Stuart Clark Editor