下面的文章, 是我在2004年的時候, 從一本英文雜誌抄寫下來, 供個人英語學習. 由於那本雜誌年代久遠, 沒有可能找到正本, 而網路上沒有電子版本, 我就只好按照手抄本, 再打一篇英語長文, 好讓各位閱覽.
那本英文雜誌, 本來就是宣傳日本文化的工具, 難免有誇張和宣傳成份. 不過, 作為參考, 還是可以一看. :
(謎之聲: 嗯, 廢話終於說完了, 真好......)
Astronomy
HEAVENS ABOVE JAPAN’s AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS HAVE DISCOVERED A GREAT MANY NEW STARS AND COMENTS. WHY THE PASSION FOR GAZING INTO THE NIGHTTIME SKIES?
The Astronomical Society of Japan was founded 96 years ago. Of the 3000 or so members, two thirds are amateurs who observe heavenly bodies as a hobby; these amateur astronomers have contributed significantly to the development of astronomy in Japan.
It seems hard to believe, but one amateur astronomer spent 40 years making sketches of the sun, another made observations of one and a half million variable stars all by himself, another discovered four supernovas in two years, and another discovered a comet with a telescope he had made himself. Of the five to ten novas that are discovered each year, over half are discovered by Japanese star gazers. This is a reflection of the huge number of passionate amateur astronomers in Japan who spend their tine observing the heavens for no other than that they love it.
“A German astronomer once told me he thought this obsession with looking at the stars was crazy,’ says Associate Professor Jun’ichi Watanabe, who studies planets at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NOAJ). “These are plenty of amateur astronomers who also attend academic conferences outside Japan, but practically
none of them change their jobs so that they can spend all night looking at the stars and waking new discoveries.” Even the pros cannot help but admire the passion of Japan’s amateur astronomers.
Amateur astronomers have been helped enormously by the availability of high-performance observation equipment; in particular, there has been a great change since the appearance of digital cameras have made it possible to see even very faint stars. High-performance digital cameras became available in Japan in the early 1990s-earlier than elsewhere-further extending the horizons of observation technology. At the same time, through, there were a great many aficionados who were less concerned with making accurate observations and simply enjoyed taking photos of the heavens as an art in itself.
In Japan today, three monthly magazines devoted to astronomy enjoy a combined circulation of around 175,000.
In addition, local governments and other organizations operate as many as 300 public astronomical observation facilities around the country, and there are also about the same number of planetariums. It is estimated that over a million amateur astronomers use there facilities every year, and there are certainly a great number of people who make a hobby of gazing at the night skies.Since 1998, the Linear and other automatic survey systems utilizing extremely large telescope have made it possible to observer the entire sky unobstructed; the joy of discovering new stars is gradually being taken away from amateur astronomers. Nevertheless, there is no sign that these developments are causing Japan’s amateur astronomers to lose heart.
Why do these people spend so much time gazing at the star? Professor Watanabe answers. “
It’s true that for a time astronomical observation is hard work. But after that comes a point of no return; these people discover a sense of unity with the universe, and then they’re just hooked.” Professor Watanabe equates this moment of discovery to the experience of enlightenment in Zen.
I asked several astronomers, the editor of an astronomy magazine, and several amateur astronomers who have actually discovered a new astronomical object why they do it. They were unanimous in their response: “Because we love it.”
-MIHO NANBA
觀星論壇 
