Stephen J. Edberg

Lore & Background

Edberg observed the Sun at observatories in Colorado, Arizona, California, Hawaii, and New Mexico during his college and graduate school years, studying magnetic fields in active regions, prominences, and the solar corona. He also investigated extragalactic objects from Siding Spring Observatory and the Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory. He began working full-time at San Fernando Observatory in 1978 before moving to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1979. While a project Investigation Scientist at JPL, he worked on Galileo, Cassini, Comet Rendezvous/Asteroid Flyby, and as System Scientist and Science Office Manager on the Space Interferometry Mission. His experience includes specifying science requirements for spacecraft early in design, coordinating competing science investigations, and planning instruction sets for robotic spacecraft in flight. Edberg organized and led the Amateur Observation Network of NASA’s International Halley Watch, creating a guide on how to make scientific observations and standardized forms for submitting data. Until his retirement in 2014, he served as Executive Director of non-profit Riverside Telescope Makers Conference, Inc., leading the team that brings the annual RTMC Astronomy Expo to hundreds of amateur astronomers from across the western USA and beyond.

Reader's Guide

Edberg's significance lies in his systematic efforts to engage amateur astronomers in professional science, most notably through the Amateur Observation Network of NASA’s International Halley Watch, where he created guides and standardized data forms. His work at JPL spanned multiple major missions, from Galileo to Cassini, and he contributed to spacecraft design and operations. His legacy includes the naming of minor planet 3672 Stevedberg by the International Astronomical Union for his long commitment to bringing amateur and professional astronomers together. He also brought astronomy into the classroom, publishing NASA Educational Briefs and teaching at La Cañada High School for about 20 years starting in 1993. His photography, research, and writing appeared in professional journals such as Solar Physics and The Astrophysical Journal, as well as popular magazines like Sky and Telescope and Astronomy. He co-authored with David H. Levy the book Observing Comets, Asteroids, Meteors, and the Zodiacal Light. Awards include a NASA Exceptional Service Medal and JPL Award for Excellence for outreach, and he was a Carter Memorial Lecturer in 2001 and an AIAA Distinguished Lecturer from 1996-2003.

Did You Know?

• Minor planet 3672 Stevedberg was named for him by the International Astronomical Union in 1987.
• He co-authored Observing Comets, Asteroids, Meteors, and the Zodiacal Light with David H. Levy.

A Career Spanning Robotic Missions

Stephen J. Edberg, born in 1952, has been a professional astronomer since 1970, but his most visible contributions came through the robotic exploration programs at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. After a formative year at San Fernando Observatory in 1978, he joined JPL the following year and went on to serve as a project investigation scientist on several landmark missions, including Galileo, Cassini, and the Comet Rendezvous/Asteroid Flyby project. On the Space Interferometry Mission he held the dual roles of System Scientist and Science Office Manager. His day-to-day work spanned the full arc of a space project: defining science requirements during the earliest design phases, mediating between competing investigations while plans were still being shaped, and ultimately crafting the precise instruction sets that guided robotic spacecraft through their in-flight measurements. Before retiring in 2014, he served as staff astronomer for NASA Headquarters' Solar System Exploration website and as staff scientist supporting earth science and exoplanet exploration communication. His career thus bridged hands-on instrument work, mission-level science planning, and public-facing communication.

Bridging the Amateur–Professional Divide

Edberg is perhaps best remembered for his sustained effort to dissolve the boundary between backyard stargazers and institutional researchers. He never stopped identifying as an active amateur astronomer, observer, photographer, and telescope maker, even while holding professional posts. That dual identity found its most concrete expression when he organized and led the Amateur Observation Network for NASA's International Halley Watch, a role in which he recruited the amateur community, wrote a practical guide to making scientifically valid observations, designed standardized data-submission forms, and saw the resulting data published. From 1993 through 2014 he served as Executive Director of the non-profit Riverside Telescope Makers Conference, Inc., steering the team that produced the annual RTMC Astronomy Expo in Big Bear, California, drawing hundreds of hobbyists from across the western United States and beyond. In 1987 the International Astronomical Union honored him by naming minor planet 3672 Stevedberg after him, a citation drafted by David H. Levy at the request of discoverer Edward Bowell of Lowell Observatory, specifically recognizing his long commitment to uniting amateur and professional astronomy.

Bringing Astronomy into the Classroom

Beyond his research and mission work, Edberg devoted enormous energy to making astronomy accessible to students. He holds a California credential as a part-time vocational teacher in Aerospace Studies and spent roughly two decades beginning in 1993 teaching astronomy at La Cañada High School. His classroom contributions extended well beyond a single school: he authored numerous educational activities covering planetary science, space science, and general astronomy, including NASA Educational Briefs and resources featured on the Practical Uses of Math and Science platform. His outreach work was formally recognized with a NASA Exceptional Service Medal and a JPL Award for Excellence. On the broader lecture circuit, he served as an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Distinguished Lecturer from 1996 to 2003 and was named Carter Memorial Lecturer by New Zealand's Carter Observatory in 2001. These roles underscore a consistent theme: Edberg saw education not as a side project but as a core responsibility of working scientists, one that could seed the next generation of observers, engineers, and researchers.

Research, Photography, and a Prolific Writing Career

Edberg's academic training took him through the University of California, Santa Cruz, and graduate work at UC San Diego and UCLA, where he split his observational time between solar and extragalactic targets. At observatories in Colorado, Arizona, California, Hawaii, and New Mexico he studied magnetic fields in solar active regions, prominences, and the corona, while from Siding Spring Observatory and the Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory he investigated distant galaxies. His output as a writer and photographer is remarkably broad. His work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals such as Solar Physics, The Astrophysical Journal, and Space Science Reviews, as well as in NASA Facts and a wide array of popular periodicals including Sky and Telescope, Astronomy, Telescope Making, Griffith Observer, Sky and Space, the Journal of the British Astronomical Association, Weather, and Rangefinder. He contributed to several guidebooks—Collins' How to Identify Night Sky, Wild Guide Night Sky, Collins Guide to the Night Sky, and Gem Weather Photoguide—and co-authored Observing Comets, Asteroids, Meteors, and the Zodiacal Light with David H. Levy, published by Cambridge University Press.