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\nMark at his Ancient Skies Observatory<\/p>\n
\nMark at his Ancient Skies Observatory<\/p>\n
It saddens me greatly to report that AAS has lost one of its beloved night sky watchers. \u00a0Mark Johnston passed away Sunday around noon after a short illness. He was laid to rest in Liberty Hill cemetery on Thursday. \u00a0At 60, he was taken from us far too soon. He will be sorely missed.<\/span><\/p>\n Mark joined AAS in 2002, about a year before I did. \u00a0We sort of grew up together in the club. He was somewhat new to astronomy. \u00a0I had been doing it since childhood but had not been active for many years. We just naturally gravitated to being observing buddies.<\/span><\/p>\n Mark was an enthusiastic participant in the Astronomical League observing programs. \u00a0His awards included the programs for Messier, Double Star, Deep Sky Binocular, Binocular Messier, Binocular Double Star, Lunar, Caldwell Silver, Globular Cluster, Planetary Nebula Advanced, Carbon Star, Stellar Evolution, Outreach Stellar, and the Herschel 400. \u00a0Mark received his Master Observer award from the Astronomical League in 2014. Mark\u2019s favorite observing program was the double star program, but his most cherished AL certificate was for the Caldwell list. To complete his silver award, Mark corresponded several times with Sir Patrick Moore (CBE HonFRS) about his observations. Sir Patrick wrote a very encouraging note on Mark\u2019s certificate shortly before his death in 2012. Mark treasured that certificate.<\/span><\/p>\n Mark was a connoisseur of fine equipment. \u00a0He had a fondness for apochromatic refractors, and a weakness for top shelf eyepieces. \u00a0He was a fanatic about maintaining and organizing his gear. His tenure as AAS equipment chair was cut short because no one could maintain apparatus to his high standards \u2013 he was driving everybody crazy. \u00a0On many occasions, I took advantage of Mark\u2019s tendencies by leaving my outreach abused eyepieces out where he could see them. It wasn\u2019t long before he\u2019d get so disgusted that he\u2019d clean the whole lot. He derived many hours of pleasure just assembling scopes on mounts. \u00a0He was always looking to put together the perfect rig. He would pester his friends with emails seeking opinions \u2013 Which finder would look best on top of the TEC 140? Watching him work on his rigs was not too different from watching a bonsai master trim a twig.<\/span><\/p>\n The man loved his double stars. \u00a0I suppose that\u2019s why he also preferred refractors. \u00a0He delighted in point star images with the Airy disk and a single refraction disk, perfect for teasing out the duplicity of tight pairs. \u00a0He also had an amazing memory for the binaries he\u2019d observed. He could spend hours hopping from one obscure gem to another without having to look at a list or a chart.<\/span><\/p>\n Mark got in more observing hours than probably anyone I know. \u00a0Even if observing conditions were marginal he would spend innumerable hours out in his zero-gravity chair going over the whole sky with binoculars. \u00a0His man cave was his backyard observing gazebo that he called Ancient Skies and I liked to call Wood Henge. We spent many companionable nights out there listening to soft rock or new age while looking up. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Mark also liked to write about his observations. \u00a0He wrote in a simple self-deprecating style that was appreciated by many club members who kept asking for \u201cmore reports Mark\u201d. \u00a0That is how he is probably remembered best by many AAS members who may not have met him in person. I think he liked to play up a bit on not being an \u201ceducated\u201d man, but he certainly worked with, hobnobbed with, and earned the respect a lot of persons carrying advanced degrees.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Professionally, Mark was a surgical technician assisting in a wide range of difficult procedures. \u00a0He could tell stories that would make your skin crawl, but he has had a hand is saving many lives. He was a great comfort to me visiting and reassuring me a couple of times when I had to go under the knife. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The love of Mark\u2019s life is his wife Beth whom he never stopped referring to as the \u201cbest thing that ever happened to me.\u201d \u00a0All his friends would agree. She did so much to keep Mark on an even keel. We morn her loss. We are grateful for all the good times we had together, but it breaks our hearts to have to say of this intrepid watcher of the night skies, our self-styled StarMan that now his watch is ended.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mark (right) with one of his mentors, John Huntsberger, who also passed away last year.<\/span><\/p>\n By Terry Phillips<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Mark at his Ancient Skies Observatory It saddens me greatly to report that AAS has lost one of its beloved night sky watchers. \u00a0Mark Johnston passed away Sunday around noon after a short illness. He was laid to rest in Liberty Hill cemetery on Thursday. \u00a0At 60, he was taken from us far too soon. 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