History of PAS

Amos Hoff joined the faculty of Phoenix College (PC) in 1937. PC was a junior college at the time, located at 1202 West Thomas Road. In that year he taught physics, mathematics, and engineering shop, and sponsored their astronomy and radio clubs. During his 30 year tenure at PC he served in many positions, including chair of the physics and engineering departments. He earned his B.A. at Manchester College and his M.S. at Northwestern, and was working towards his doctorate at U. of A. at the time of his retirement in 1967. Hoff passed away in 1987 in California. His lifelong enthusiasm for science, and his love of astronomy, carried over into all his endeavors. During his first ten years at PC he developed a vision for public education in astronomy that ultimately led to the creation of PAS.

As early as November 1943, Hoff was teaching a Phoenix College astronomy class that doubled as training in celestial navigation for students headed into aviation. "The astronomy class has been emphasizing aerial navigation as well as astronomy, since most of the class is interested in aviation training," Hoff told the campus yearbook staff, after his students used the school's 5-inch refractor to locate Venus in the middle of the afternoon. "We are studying astronomy, meteorology, and celestial navigation."

By 1946-47 Hoff had founded and was moderating the college's Astronomy Club, built around that same Clark Brothers 5-inch refractor — by yearbook accounts, "one of the finest telescopes in the west" available to Phoenix at the time, and one of its most active and successful years. That early class and club were the seed from which the Phoenix Observatory Association, and later PAS, grew.

Under the leadership of Keith Parizek, PAS Treasurer at the time of Hoff's passing, it was decided that a special lecture event should be held in his honor — the Amos Hoff Memorial Lecture.

In 1974 POA was incorporated as the Phoenix Astronomical Society, a non-profit organization, for the purpose of raising the required funding for the observatory. Surviving issues of the Society's newsletter, Sky-Lines, from this period capture just how active those final Phoenix College years were. On Friday, November 21, 1975, members gathered at PC to inspect newly completed Cassegrain optics for the Amos Hoff 24" reflector, ground by noted Tucson optician Don Loomis, along with slides and movie footage of the mirror being polished and of the telescope in operation on campus — even as plans for a new observatory building, and the mirror's eventual sale, were already taking shape. That same season, the Society's newly formed Astrophotography Group, led by Bill Anderson, met monthly to trade techniques and, in January 1976, uncovered a cache of astronomical slides from the early 1900s in the Phoenix College archives. Members were also tracking the skies themselves — Comet Kobayashi-Berger-Milon brightened to naked-eye visibility that summer, and a nova in Cygnus flared into view that August, prompting S.I. Gale to present slides of it, "particularly noted was its vivid red color as it faded," to the club that fall. In October 1975, members and their families caravanned to Flagstaff for a tour of Lowell Observatory's Andrews Mesa site, hosted by planetary observer Charles Capen — including a look at the 13" astrocamera Clyde Tombaugh had used to discover Pluto, more than a decade before Tombaugh himself would speak to PAS.

In 1975 a second site was selected on a half-acre parcel in what was then the 340 acre Paradise Valley Park, with the Paradise Valley School District as the intended recipient. It was hoped the observatory would stimulate interest in astronomy and serve as a resource for science courses in those schools. Negotiations with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors faltered, and in 1976 the mirror was put up for auction. Dr. Keith Parizek, POA President 1960-1966, purchased the mirror for $2,600. It was installed at his private observatory in Alpine, AZ shortly thereafter, where it resides to this day. The mount was purchased by Lloyd Horton, then a resident of New River. Its present disposition is unknown.

During the last half of the 70's a schism developed in the membership. A growing number of PAS members felt the organization had lost sight of its original goal — observing. The organization fissioned and gave birth to the Saguaro Astronomy Club in 1976-77, still a major player in AZ amateur astronomy. PAS, diminished but still strong, continued its astronomy advocacy activities at PC through 1985, meeting in Room C-102, the science lecture hall. That building has since been demolished; the old site is now home to PC's new Arts Center.

In 1983, then PAS President Stan Gorodenski organized, with the help of other Officers, the first multi-club observing event at the Filthy Five Park in Black Canyon City. In attendance were members from the Prescott Astronomy Club (PAC), Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA), Saguaro Astronomy Club (SAC), and PAS. The effort was continued by the East Valley Astronomy Club (EVAC) and later evolved into what is now the annual All Arizona Star Party, a tradition that continues to this day. During his two-year tenure as President, Stan also created the position of Editor, making it separate from the Secretary/Treasurer position to better divide responsibilities. With the advent of computer technology, the newsletter was rapidly evolving from its original 3x5 card format to a more readable and flexible full-page format with graphics included. The first official Editor was Bill Krist (1982-1983).

In 1984, PAS ran a design contest among its members to come up with an official society logo. Many creative submissions were received. The membership voted to adopt the design of charter member Harold Moorin, which it retains to this day — used on all official society publications, including this website.

When PAS founder Amos Hoff passed away in 1987, Keith Parizek, PAS Treasurer at the time, suggested a fitting tribute: an Amos Hoff Memorial Lecture, hosted jointly with the Saguaro Astronomy Club — both societies being progeny of the original Phoenix Observatory Association. The lecture never became an annual series, but the one-time event was a resounding success.

Clyde Tombaugh, discoverer of Pluto, was living in Las Cruces, New Mexico at the time, working with New Mexico State University in support of his Tombaugh Scholars Fund. Parizek — who years earlier had actually corresponded with Tombaugh about construction details for a blink comparator he was building — reached out and invited him to be PAS's premiere speaker. Tombaugh graciously accepted, and the lecture was set for Friday, March 25, 1988, in the gym at Brophy Prep, with seating for hundreds and publicity driven jointly by PAS, SAC, and local media. Clyde and his wife Patsy stayed with the Parizeks in Paradise Valley for the visit, giving PAS and SAC members a chance to spend an informal evening with the discoverer of a planet before the lecture itself.

Prior to the visit, Parizek had scanned the original Pluto discovery plates and printed them on acetate sized for his now-completed blink comparator. After the Tombaughs arrived, Keith asked Clyde if he remembered their old phone conversation about the comparator — which, even decades later, Clyde recalled as "one of the more interesting phone calls he received while at NMSU." Keith invited him to try the apparatus, telling him only that it held some "old plates" related to an asteroid — without mentioning he'd secretly loaded the copied discovery plates. Clyde sat down, peered into the eyepieces, and began toggling between the images. After a few passes, recognition spread across his face. He stood up, still smiling, and said: "Thanks! I just discovered Pluto for the second time."

On the night of the lecture, hundreds of astronomy enthusiasts from around the valley filled Brophy Prep. At 7:45 pm, following a brief introduction from Parizek and then-PAS President Richard Wasson, Tombaugh took the podium and spoke for roughly two hours on his discovery and career, illustrated with a 35mm slide show of highlights from his astronomical life. A question-and-answer period followed, and the evening closed with the chance to purchase an autographed poster commemorating his discovery of Pluto — all proceeds benefiting the Tombaugh Scholar Fund for astronomy majors at NMSU. It remains one of the major events in PAS history, and a fitting tribute to both Hoff and Tombaugh alike.

Our 2004-2005 meeting season was hosted by Foothills Academy College Preparatory (FA) at 7191 East Ashler Hills Drive. Though we are still the Phoenix Astronomical Society, this move took us even farther north out of Phoenix and into north Scottsdale. Constructed in 2003, this school had a beautiful new campus with multimedia-ready classrooms, including digital projection systems and broadband internet access. Serving a largely upscale clientele in this area, it again held the promise of increased membership as well as a more professional venue for our speakers. In a move to reduce expenses, our newsletter PAStimes, under the Editorship of Terri Finch and Matt Kohl, was made available for electronic delivery during the 2004 season. Members with internet access could now download the newsletter directly from our website. In 2005 PAS elected Terri Finch as President, the first woman to hold this position. As a longtime member, and PAStimes Editor from 1993 to 2005, she was eminently qualified to serve us in this capacity.

In 2015, while Sam Insana was president, Aquila Hall opened at the Black Mountain campus of PVCC. Included with the building is a large pad to the west, designed to support up to a dozen amateur telescopes, including power. PAS began holding monthly public star parties there to take advantage of the excellent facilities and darker skies available in Cave Creek. In 2018 an automated observatory was added by the college to the end of the cement pad, including a dome, 14" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, and Paramount GOTO mount with cameras and software.