You’ve come to the right place

Our members are amateur astronomers, and come from all walks of life, just like you. We believe that whether you’ve recently become curious about the night sky or already have a telescope, you are perfect for The Amateur Observers’ Society of New York (AOSNY.) When you join an astronomy club like AOSNY, you’re in for a fun way to experience the enjoyment of our hobby and become a part of an active astronomy club with hundreds of active members from ages 7 to 90. We even have members of the Amateur Observers’ Society of New York may have joined while living on Long Island but have since moved away. It is a testament to the tight bond our club has that they remain members of AOSNY whether living here, across America or across the globe.

The AOSNY activities program has 3 parts:

• Monthly meetings
• Members-only activities
• Public outreach activities

Monthly meetings

The General Meeting is held the first Sunday of each month. Our meeting format includes socialization time, sharing member observation reports, club news and a guest speaker. Since being forced to “go virtual” in 2020, we’ve been fortunate to have amazing guest speakers, some from across the country and even the globe. Many times, we’ve been able to add a second meeting to the month to accommodate the guest speaker schedules. There are too many to list here, but our guest list has included a NASA Mars Rover operator, the director of the Vatican Observatory, and the discoverer of 11 comets! Of course we’ve enjoyed all our guest speakers and we think you will too.

Members-only activities

Like any group of people with a similar interest, we not only love astronomy but we also like doing stuff together. Our activities directors have come up with some terrific ideas. For instance, a behind-the-scenes tour of the meteorite collection at the Rose Center for Earth and Space in NYC, a bus trip to see the Moon exhibit at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and the City of Stars NYC walking tour are just a few of the recent great times we’ve had together. And, of course, our annual AOSNY Summer Picnic and the end-of-year Holiday Party.

Plus, members-only access

In addition, our members also have access to the Sue Rose Observatory at the Custer Institute in Southold, NY, which houses our incredible 14-inch telescope, as well as access to other observatory facilities the club occupies. AOSNY also has exclusive access to Jones Beach after dark on select nights throughout the year!

Public outreach activities

What good is owning a telescope if you can’t share its view? AOSNY owns many telescopes and sharing their views are why we do public outreach. Over the years, the Amateur Observers’ Society of New York has brought the night sky to the general public with programs for all ages that are both educational and just plain cool. If you have attended Hofstra University’s Stars on Sunday program or the Music Under the Stars program at Eisenhower Park, you’ve probably looked through one of our telescopes! Those programs, as well as the countless programs we’ve conducted at Jones Beach State Park and Southold NY’s Custer Observatory are what we love to do.

When you join an astronomy club like ours, you’re part of an organization that also volunteers at large public events. Annual events such as the annual Astronomy Day at Long Island’s Cradle of Aviation and Washington DC’s Astronomy Festival on the National Mall. And finally, AOSNY has conducted many more smaller scale outreach programs, whether for a local civic association or at a public library, one thing is for sure about our outreach philosophy… we’re serious about making astronomy fun.