About Me
My name is James Durbano. I'm an astronomer who specializes in astronomy education for both the general public and for K-12 students. I live in the foothills of Southern Alberta, between the Rocky Mountains and the Canadian Prairies. I've been keeping an eye on the sky for more than 25 years and have had the privilege of sharing the wonders of the universe with more than thirty thousand people. As an educator, I've represented many of Canada's Science Centres and Science Museums, including the Edmonton Space and Science Centre, the TELUS World of Science - Calgary (formerly the Calgary Science Centre), the Roberta Bondar Earth and Space Centre Planetarium at Seneca College, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Royal Tyrrell Museum, and the Calgary SpacePort. I have also worked on a few special astronomy and space education projects for the University of Lethbridge, in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency. My undergraduate degrees were completed at the University of Toronto. I completed programs of study (double-major and a minor) in Geology, Geography, and Astronomy (Bachelor of Science) and also General Science and Environmental Science (Bachelor of Education). The Big Sky Astronomical Society was founded by me, back in 1998, with the goal of establishing an observatory devoted to education and situated under a dark sky. This goal has been achieved and now the Big Sky Observatory is the only public observatory in Alberta situated under a truly dark sky. Personal Night Sky Tours at the Big Sky Observatory can be arranged by contacting me at 403-973-STAR. In May 2005, while in Montreal attending the annual meeting of the Canadian Astronomical Society, I was presented with a one-of-a-kind plaque-mounted image of the Pleiades (M45) star cluster. This absolutely incredible image was captured by the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) using the MegaCam - a specially designed 340-megapixel camera. This honour was bestowed upon me because I had written the winning proposal in a national contest in which amateur astronomers were asked what they would do if they were given one-hour to use one of Canada's biggest telescopes. You can read more about this contest by referring to the October 2005 issue of Sky & Telescope magazine (pages 98-99) or by reading the online articles at Sky & Telescope magazine or Astronomy magazine. As you can probably imagine, I really do enjoy taking people on a tour of the night sky using a green laser and a telescope, but I also enjoy taking them on a tour using the simulated sky inside a planetarium. Currently, I'm the Mobile Discovery Dome Program Leader at the TELUS World of Science - Calgary. Approximately once a week, during the school year, I visit a local school with the digital planetarium and share the wonders of the universe with approximately 100 kids. In the past, I have operated a STARLAB planetarium for the Royal Ontario Museum, the Edmonton Space and Science Centre, and the TELUS World of Science - Calgary. I have also operated the Spitz System 512 planetarium projector located at the Roberta Bondar Earth and Space Centre Planetarium, at Seneca College, in Toronto. According to my calculations, I've taken about twenty thousand people on a tour of the night sky from inside a planetarium. In addition to night sky tours and planetarium presentations, I also spend a bit of time writing about astronomy. My most recent news story appeared in the Prairie Post and I've had several other news stories and newspaper articles published in various community newspapers across Alberta. Currently, I'm in the early stages of writing my first astronomy book and I'm also pursuing online technical writing opportunities in the fields of space and astronomy. |  Bachelor of Science  Bachelor of Education |
