Astronomy on Tap Hawai’i – September 4th, 2025

We are excited to announce the speakers for our Astronomy on Tap event next week Thursday, September 4th, 7-9 pm at Hilo Town Tavern. Come join us for a fun night of astronomy talks and games!

The Joys of Amateur Astronomy

Amateur astronomy is a hobby with something for everyone. From simple stargazing to making telescopes and astrophotography, there has never been a more exciting time to enjoy astronomy as an amateur. New technologies are making the hobby more amazing every day and in this talk Peter will share many of the options for engaging in the Universe with your own eyes and brain!

Peter Michaud recently retired after 27 years as the Education and Engagement manager at NSF’s NOIRLab/Gemini but continues to conduct public tours of the Gemini Observatory. In his retirement, he continues to pursue his passion for astronomy as an amateur stargazer, telescope maker, and astrophotographer. Peter also loves bicycling, tinkering with, and building audio equipment, and inventing mostly useless things!

Seeing the Skies with Radio Eyes

What if we could “see” in radio waves, an entirely different Universe would appear! In this talk, we’ll tune our “radio eyes” to the sky and explore how astronomers use giant dish antennas to listen in on the hidden universe. From microwaves to pigeon poop, there is a lot of history behind some of the greatest astronomical discoveries of our time. Besides these stories, I will also share my own quest of hunting for monster radio jets in the early Universe.

Anniek Gloudemans is a research fellow at Gemini North Observatory working on understanding the formation and evolution of the most massive supermassive black holes in the early Universe. She obtained her PhD at Leiden Observatory in the Netherlands in 2023 and moved to Hilo soon after. Anniek has a passion for teaching and organizing outreach activities for all ages with a focus on connecting the world through astronomy and raising awareness for climate change.