Radio telescopes are use by astronomers around the world to observe the naturally occurring radio waves that come from celestial objects. Visible-light astronomy doesn’t tell the whole story about objects in space – to get a better understanding of them requires that astronomers study them in as many wavelengths as possible, including the radio range.

Tom Hagen has been an amateur astronomer on and off since his high school years in the 1970’s. Right now, he’s very “on” as an active volunteer at the McMath-Hulbert Astronomical Society in Lake Angelus, Michigan. Other associations are with the Oakland Astronomy Club in Rochester, Michigan and the Society of Amateur Radio Astronomers. Tom is a retired electrical engineer having worked in the automotive industry. He has a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University and a Master’s degree in EE from Oakland University. He lives in Rochester MI with his wife and cat.

Cover Image: The Very Large Array (VLA) Credit: Alex Savello.

Additional Resources:

Video: Quick intro to Radio Astronomy

Multiwavelength Milky Way

Maps of the Milky Way at ten wavelengths, from radio waves to gamma rays, and a finder diagram are available on a colorful poster. A short paragraph next to each map explains how the observation was made, and what the measurments tell us about the Milky Way. A poster-sized version is available as a printable pdf file.