Greetings AAVSO Members, Observers, and Supporters,
Having now closed out 2024, I wanted to share with you some highlights from the last quarter, including updates on our software, the annual meeting, strategic initiative and Board activities. It has been a really busy quarter, so this update is much more lengthy than normal. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask them on the forums or reach out to me using the email address below.
News
Dr. Brad Schaefer and Dr. Hisashi Hayakawa contacted several AAVSO solar observers to request their raw sunspot counts from before the year 2000. They are doing this to improve the historical records of individual long-term observers and construct a revised estimate for the American Sunspot Count. Most observers have already responded to this request, but if you have sunspot data from before the year 2000 and you haven’t been contacted yet, please reach out to AAVSO HQ and we’ll put you in touch with Brad.
Our software developer, Aru Bhoop, has been busy creating new applications to improve the quality of your data and make it more accessible to researchers. This includes a replacement for WebObs, a new global search tool, and a new photometric data download tool.
The new photometric data upload tool is designed to replace the existing WebObs application. As recommended by the Data Quality Taskforce, this new application enforces several quality checks at the time of submission and includes a preview function so you can see how your observations compare with fellow observers. While the initial rollout had some issues, most of the bugs have been worked out. Thank you to all of those who have been testing the application and providing us with feedback by email or in the forums. We will continue to test the application through mid-February, at which time we will announce a plan to sunset Webobs.
We also introduced a new Global Search Tool that queries the AID, AVSpec, and Exoplanet database for data on a given object. Over the next year, we will expand the tool to query APASS data releases, APASS Epoch Photometry, BSM Epoch Photometry, the Eggen Card Project, and several other lesser-known databases. We anticipate that this tool will become the common entry point for most researchers wanting to use AAVSO data.
Lastly, the new photometry download tool gives researchers additional download formats and allows the AAVSO to package ancillary data, like readmes and acknowledgement instructions, with the downloads. Under the hood, it also introduces a unified method for us to track data downloads across all of our applications.
2025 Annual Campaign Results
While our annual campaign wrapped up on January 31st, 2025, it began in late October 2024. We set out with a goal of $110,000 to help us meet our brand new strategic plan goals. You not only helped us reach our goal, but exceed it, raising $126,000. Your support of this campaign will allow the AAVSO to provide you an enhanced experience in 2025. From dynamic educational opportunities to upgraded technology, be on the lookout for your donor dollars in action. We could have never made these leaps and bounds without you and your generosity, and from all us at the AAVSO, thank you!
2024 Annual Meeting
The AAVSO’s 113th Annual Meeting was held at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL on November 8-10. More than 100 people attended in person, joined by 45 people online. We are grateful to our sponsors: Chroma, Diffraction Limited, DC3 Dreams, and QHYCCD. Like last year, the meeting was packed full of new and exciting information on variable stars. Dr. John Blevins, Chief Engineer for NASA’s Space Launch System, delivered our Friday night keynote talk, “Big Science on the Big Rocket”. We began Saturday morning with an exciting presentation on T CrB by Dr. Brad Scahaefer, and Dr. Sukana Chakrabarti educated us on the latest in dark matter research. These keynote talks were complemented by 18 contributed talks and 14 posters.
Sunday morning was AAVSO’s Annual Member Meeting where we heard updates from the Board, Treasurer, JAAVSO Editor, and me. Gordon Myers received the prestigious Merit Award and Gary Walker was honored with the William Tyler Olcott Distinguished Service Award. In addition, many observing awards were issued. Following the Member Meeting, Richard Berry and I discussed the AAVSO’s new Strategic Plan for 2025 - 2029. If you’d like to know more about these items, please watch the 2024 Annual Member Meeting on YouTube.
2025 Annual Meeting
The AAVSO’s 114th Annual Meeting will be held in person at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in Portland, Oregon. The Board will conduct its annual meeting on Friday, Oct. 31 and the Science Meeting and Annual Member Meeting will be held on November 1-2.
To manage costs, lunch will not be provided, but attendees will have access to OMSI’s in-house restaurant and nearby dining options. Coffee and light snacks will be available during morning breaks. A volunteer committee is being assembled to assist with event preparations. If you are interested in helping out, please send me an email.
Progress 2024 Strategic Goals
As we near the end of 2024, it's important to reflect on the progress we've made toward our strategic goals. Over the past year, we've worked to strengthen AAVSO’s position in modern astronomy, enhance our technical infrastructure, and implement key recommendations to improve data quality. Below is a summary of our accomplishments and ongoing efforts.
Goal 1 – Establish Our Place in Modern Astronomy
To further integrate AAVSO into modern astronomy, we developed guidelines for sky survey engagement, which will serve as an internal reference for headquarters staff. Efforts to create observing programs with the upcoming ESA PLATO mission are well underway. Bert, along with the PLATO Citizen Science office, will launch one observing program focusing on Binaries in early 2025. Our March webinar will discuss this effort in greater detail. There will also be a PLATO-focused exoplanet program coming out in mid-to-late 2025. I have started discussions with some researchers associated with the NASA Habitable World Observatory, a mission slated for the 2040s about observing their program stars. Lastly, we completed a demographics survey, yielding some 591 responses. A summary of its findings will be published in the JAAVSO near the end of this year.
Goal 2 – Improve Technical Infrastructure
Several major technical upgrades were completed this year. We successfully replaced our authentication system, ported most of our custom applications over to containers and deployed them on a scalable computing architecture, and launched a new forum for our community. However, our plans to migrate www.aavso.org away from Drupal to Wordpress were delayed due to integration challenges with our new customer relationship management (CRM) system. The transition is now expected to be completed in April 2025. As I have mentioned before, we will not be migrating all 60,000 webpages on www.aavso.org to the new system. Instead, we are going to migrate the top 50-100 pages initially, with the rest archived and restored based upon demand.
Goal 3 – Implement DQTF Recommendations
Implementing the recommendations from the Data Quality Task Force (DQTF) has been both rewarding and challenging. While we successfully integrated quality checks into the new photometric data upload tool, efforts to develop automated tools to scan the AID for quality issues has proven significantly more complex than anticipated. While we have a few more ideas to try out, I think it unlikely that we will be able to deploy such a tool at scale. To enhance observer knowledge, we completed a CHOICE course focused on high-quality data collection and reduction techniques. Additionally, we improved data packaging for users by incorporating metadata and readme files into the new photometry download tool. However, revisions to the observing manuals have been deferred to a later date.
Stretch Goals
In an effort to reduce barriers to variable star research, we investigated how smart telescopes might be integrated into AAVSO’s programs. The Smart Telescope Working Group has put together an application to process and reduce data from these devices, but there are a plethora of minute details that need to be worked out before this application can be provided to the public.
Throughout the year, our efforts to strengthen ties with researchers were always at the forefront of our activities. Our efforts to collaborate with CHARA yielded mixed results: we obtained plenty of photometry, but didn’t meet the researcher’s needs for spectroscopic data. I’ll be working with the Spectroscopy Special Interest Group to alleviate some of the impediments they encountered. As mentioned above, our level of engagement with current and future space missions, like ESA PLATO and NASA’s HWO, is yielding positive results.
From the Board
During the quarter, the Board approved a new Strategic Plan, ratified several new policies, and began work on several new policies.
2025 - 2029 Strategic Plan
The new strategic plan focuses on five key areas:
- Enhancing High-Science Value Programs – We will dedicate 20% of our Ph.D. staff time to research involving AAVSO members. This will be realized through a series of Small Research Team programs launching in Q1 2025. Additionally, we will shift toward project-driven observing and data analysis activities, similar to the Z Campaign Effort in 2010.
- Developing Skilled Observers – AAVSO plans to hire a full-time educator in 2026 to develop materials for Small Research Teams and improve existing training resources. Over time, we will transition AAVSO’s educational content to a modern learning platform, offering materials that will be free to all, free to members, or paid.
- Cultivating Membership – We will actively recruit key individuals for leadership positions, establish scholarship and grant programs, and publicly recognize member achievements.
- Strengthening Our Role in the Astronomical Community – We will develop a publication tracking application, recruit professional astronomers who can benefit from AAVSO’s work, and expand our reach through smart telescope initiatives and a new education and public outreach (EPO) program.
- Advancing Technology – We will integrate metrics into core applications to better understand usage and undertake upgrades to legacy software.
New Policies
The Board ratified a Data Privacy Policy and established a Minor Participation Policy, allowing individuals under 18 to participate in AAVSO programs with parental consent. To obtain the necessary forms, please contact AAVSO headquarters at aavso@aavso.org.
Elections and Bylaw Modifications
At the Annual Member Meeting in November, the following individuals were elected to the Board as Elected Directors (Class of 2027):
- Tom Maccarone (re-elected)
- Molly Wakeling
- Diogo Teixeira (re-elected)
Members also approved several bylaw modifications, including:
- Removing Organizational Memberships which were not in use
- Creating an Associate Membership category to allow bulk purchases for classrooms
- Shifting to rolling 12-month memberships instead of calendar-year terms
- Allowing the Annual Member Meeting to be held in-person, virtual, or hybrid format
- Consolidating Elected Director guidelines into a single section
- Clarifying re-election requirements for Elected Directors
- Extending the allowed gap between the Annual Board Meeting and the Annual Member Meeting from one week to one month
- Implementing various clerical corrections
At the Annual Board Meeting, the following officers were elected:
- 1st Vice President: Walt Cooney
- 2nd Vice President: Mark Munkacy
- Secretary: Arne Henden
To fill vacancies on the Board, Aaron Sliski and Dr. Dipankar Maitra were appointed to the Class of 2025, while Bruce McMath and Mark Hardaker were appointed to the Class of 2026.
Several committee appointments were also made, including for Marketing, Special Interest Groups (SIGs), Development, Science Meeting Organization, and the new Education & Public Outreach (EPO) Committee. A full list of appointments can be found here.
Kind regards,
Dr. Brian Kloppenborg
Executive Director
American Association of Variable Star Observers
Email: bkloppenborg@aavso.org