Past Residencies - Stephen Hummel

Stephen Hummel is the Dark Skies Initiative Coordinator for McDonald Observatory, part of the University of Texas at Austin. His work has focused on preserving dark skies in the Big Bend region of Texas and Mexico. Hummel worked to create the Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve, the largest area in the world certified by Dark Sky International. An experienced astronomy and dark sky educator, Stephen has led hundreds of constellation tours and telescope viewing events, as well as trainings for state and national park staff. Hummel works with industrial facilities, hotels, businesses, and local governments on lighting design to preserve dark skies. In his spare time, he is an award winning astrophotographer with a specialty in rare electrical phenomena above nighttime thunderstorms.

During his time in residence, Hummel offered several visitor programs in addition to constellation tours. He offered several pop-up interpretive sessions on light pollution using a unique diaorama of a house that displays various lighting practices. He also completed an extensive night-sky-quality study for the park, taking sky quality measurements from several locations. He compiled the data and compared it with the last big qualitative study from 2015.

Stephen Hummel was selected as Grand Canyon's twelfth Astronomer in Residence.

Residency Accomplishments

• Delivered 12 formal programs to over 2,600 visitors.
• Delivered several "pop-up" programs on light pollution using a model-house which demonstrated different lighting techniques.
• Completed an extensive night-sky-quality study for the park. Delivered an Executive Summary to park leadership on the state of light pollution in and around the park.
• Offered solar viewing sessions to park visitors.
• Special guest speaker at Lowell Observatory's I HEART Pluto Festival.
• Spoke at the Grand Canyon School about astronomy to various classes.
• Starred in a Grand Canyon "Minute Out In It" film.

During his residency, Hummel presented several talks, including “Astronomy without a Telescope;” “Preserving Dark Skies;” and “Sprites, Elves, Ghosts, and More: The weird world of upper atmospheric lightning,” to thousands of visitors.

Each talk was followd by a laser-guided constellation talk under some of the darkest night skies in the United States.

During the day, Stephen offered solar viewing sessions where visitors could look at the Sun safely through a special solar telescope.

Media Coverage of Stephen Hummel's Residency

Stephen Hummel Named 2025 Astronomer in Residence by Grand Canyon Conservancy - Big Bend Times

Grand Canyon's New Astronomer in Residence - Arizona Highways