As you read this, our planet is hurtling through space on its
annual journey around the sun, our solar system, tucked into a
rotating disc of stars, is spinning around the center of the Milky
Way Galaxy, and our galaxy is pushing through black space as it
nears one of its neighbors, the Andromeda Galaxy.
From the perspective of our ground-level lives, these ongoing
events are easy to forget about. Sure, we may occasionally
appreciate the beauty of the full moon rising over the Diablo
Mountains, or stop and notice a particularly clear, starry night,
but for the most part, the interstellar ballet above us goes
unnoticed.
As you read this, our planet is hurtling through space on its annual journey around the sun, our solar system, tucked into a rotating disc of stars, is spinning around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, and our galaxy is pushing through black space as it nears one of its neighbors, the Andromeda Galaxy.
From the perspective of our ground-level lives, these ongoing events are easy to forget about. Sure, we may occasionally appreciate the beauty of the full moon rising over the Diablo Mountains, or stop and notice a particularly clear, starry night, but for the most part, the interstellar ballet above us goes unnoticed.
But on any given day, Hollister real estate broker and amateur astronomer David Baumgartner can likely tell you the exact phase of the moon, not only which planets currently grace our skies but where to find them and when the next notable celestial event will take place, such as a lunar eclipse or a visit from a comet. Looking upward from his backyard observatory, his telescopes and cameras keep watch over it all.
“It’s a hobby that got out of hand,” he said recently with a chuckle, while sitting behind the desk of his day job, Baumgartner Realty.
An upbeat man with an affinity for funny remarks, Baumgartner’s enthusiasm fills the room as he talks about his lifelong interest in astronomy.
Raised in the 1950s, Baumgartner grew up on the cusp of the space race between the United States and Russia. In an era where Sputnik and Gemini became household names, the race to the moon not only seized the world’s attention, it also captured a young boy’s heart.
Baumgartner recalled Christmas morning in1956. Waiting for him under the tree was his first telescope. Immediately, the overjoyed boy took it outside his Hollister home where, ignoring any coaxing from his parents, he spent the rest of the day.
“I didn’t even come in the house to open the rest of my presents,” he said. “I remember that like it was yesterday.”
As he got older, he continued to dabble in astronomy, although it never turned into a career path. He studied at California Polytechnic Institute and then served in the Air Force for four years, the last of which he was stationed in Greenland. With simultaneous pride and repugnance, he remarked that his post was a mere 700 miles from the North Pole. He and his wife, JoAnne, soon returned to Hollister, where the high school sweethearts settled down and started a family.
While building a career and raising three children, astronomy at times had to take a backseat. But about five years ago, his hobby made a comeback thanks to a budding interest in the subject by one of his nine grandchildren.
“That’s all I needed, somebody to re-kindle it,” Baumgartner said. Now, having the perfect alibi for expenditures of both time and money, Baumgartner was able to revisit his avocation with a renewed fervor.
“It’s for the kid,” he said with a mischievous grin. He shrugged his arms, playfully attempting to assert his innocence.
Baumgartner’s grandson, who was about 10-years-old when he showed interest in astronomy, has not been the only youngster to benefit from having a role model who is passionate for the stars. About twice a year, Baumgartner teaches astronomy to fourth- and fifth-grade students at Tres Pinos School, possibly helping to inspire the next generation of celestial scientists and space travelers.
“I learn more out of those classes than they do,” Baumgartner said, laughing. “We have such a good time.”
The classes sometimes include field trips to his backyard observatory; a structure built three years ago out of a kit delivered from Australia. He named the observatory Cygnus, which is Latin for swan. The name refers not only to a constellation in the Milky Way Galaxy, but also to Baumgartner’s other hobby; raising the graceful-looking aquatic birds.
As Baumgartner has learned, studying objects light-years away also has benefits for everyday life on earth, where a bigger perspective on things often helps sort through would-be stressors.
“I’m just a little insignificant person here. I don’t really mean that much and neither do my problems,” said Baumgartner, as he expressed his own version of don’t-sweat-the-small-stuff.
When Baumgartner is not checking out the skies from his own observatory, he takes his telescopes to star parties with his friends Mike and Steve or to Fremont Peak, where he is a member of the Fremont Peak Observatory Association.
With colorful, glossy astronomy magazines an arm’s reach away in his office, Baumgartner continues to absorb more knowledge about the never-ending subject of space. Name an aspect of astronomy and Baumgartner will likely have something to say about it, from the probability of other life forms existing in the universe, to growing concerns over light pollution, to appropriate next steps for the United States space program.
Baumgartner will be among those watching closely in the future to see what develops around a future manned mission to Mars. But, if Baumgartner had his way, he would be doing more than just watching.
With a wistful look in his eye he said, unwavering, “If you’re asking me, I’m ready. I would go in a second.”
